.png)
Visual guide to how the Gaza aid distribution turmoil unfolded
- Al Jazeera
- May 28
- 5 min read
In the early hours of Tuesday morning, thousands of starving people made the long journey to south Gaza, many walking tens of kilometres in the scorching summer heat to reach a newly established aid distribution centre run by the Israeli- and US-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF).
Among them was Walaa Abu Sa’da (35), mother of three children who decided to go to Rafah by herself.
“My children were on the verge of starving. No milk, no food, not even baby formula. They cried day and night, and I had to beg neighbours for scraps,” Abu Sa’da told Al Jazeera.
While the previous United Nations-led distribution network operated about 400 sites across the Strip, the GHF, guarded by armed private security contractors working for a US company, has set up only four “mega-sites” for Gaza’s population of about two million Palestinians.
Long walk south
Three of GHF’s distribution sites are in Rafah, situated within areas where the Israeli military has issued evacuation warnings. The fourth site is in Gaza City, near the boundary with Deir el-Balah, where hundreds of thousands of displaced Palestinians are sheltering. None of the distribution points are located north of the Netzarim Corridor.
The UN and aid groups say the GHF does not abide by humanitarian principles, accusing it of weaponising aid and warning that it could serve to depopulate northern Gaza, as planned by the Israeli military.
As word spread, large crowds descended on the site, lining up in front of metal fences topped with surveillance cameras.
Witnesses described a slow and tightly controlled entry process, with people funnelled through narrow fenced corridors that resembled cattle chutes.
Once inside the distribution area, people were subjected to ID checks and eye scans to determine who was permitted to receive aid.
As crowds grew restless while waiting in the heat, people began pushing forward, eventually breaking through the fences.
The scene turned chaotic as people surged towards the aid parcels, desperately trying to seize whatever they could, causing the security personnel to flee.
“Crowds surged in - thousands of people. There was no order at all,” Jehad al-Assar, 31, told Al Jazeera. “People rushed towards the yard where aid boxes were stacked and moved into the inner hall, where there were more supplies.
“It was chaos - a real struggle. Men, women, children, all crammed together, pushing to grab whatever they could. No queues, no system - just hunger and disorder,” al-Assar added.
From a distance, plumes of dust could be seen as people rushed to grab whatever they could. Israel has not allowed food into the Strip for nearly three months, adding to people's desperation.
Shots were then heard as Palestinians ducked for cover. Israeli forces say they opened fire into the air to control the crowds, however, injuries sustained by Palestinians on the ground suggest gunshots were fired into the crowd.
At least three Palestinians were killed in the chaos, and many more were injured.
Despite the GHF saying it distributed 8,000 food boxes on Tuesday, amounting to 462,000 meals, Al Jazeera correspondent Hind al-Khourdary said the rations would do little to sustain families for long.
Khoudary described a typical box with 4kg (8.8lb) of flour, a couple of bags of pasta, two cans of fava beans, a pack of tea bags and some biscuits. Other food parcels contained lentils and soup in small quantities.
“We have been dying of starvation. We have to feed our children who want to eat. What else can we do? I could do anything to feed them,” a Palestinian father told Al Jazeera. “We saw people running, and we followed them, even if it meant taking a risk, and it was scary. But fear is not worse than starvation.”
Despite her best efforts, by the time Abu Sa’da, the mother of three, made it to Rafah, it was too late.
Abu Sa’da described the experience as deeply humiliating. She was filled with shame and inferiority.
“I covered my face with my scarf the whole time. I didn’t want anyone to recognise me going to get a food parcel,” she added.
Still, Abu Sa’da says she would do it again if needed.
Limited water and electricity
Water is scarce and electricity is almost non-existent in Gaza, making it nearly impossible for people to use the limited supplies they manage to obtain.
Reporting live from Deir el-Balah, Al Jazeera correspondent Tareq Abu Azzoum explained that it is “impossible to cook any dry food in Gaza - including lentils, rice, or even pasta - without having water".
"And if you had water, you would also need electricity or a fuel source, which have both been completely cut off entirely from Gaza," he said.
What is the GHF?
The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) is a newly established, US- and Israeli-approved organisation that is distributing food to Palestinians in Gaza. The organisation has already been marred with delays and difficulties, with the United Nations saying the group does not have the ability to deal with the dire humanitarian situation in Gaza, following Israel’s three-month blockade of supplies into the besieged Strip.
Under increasing pressure to lift the blockade on Gaza and allow essential supplies in, Israel has attempted to present a solution by distributing aid via the US-backed GHF. However, Jake Wood, a US military veteran overseeing the organisation, has already resigned, saying it would not be able to fulfil the principles of "humanity, neutrality, impartiality, and independence".
The GHF “restricts aid to only one part of Gaza while leaving other dire needs unmet”, UN humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher said at the Security Council last week. “It makes aid conditional on political and military aims. It makes starvation a bargaining chip. It is a cynical sideshow. A deliberate distraction. A fig leaf for further violence and displacement.”
The UN and other humanitarian organisations have refused to work with the GHF on the basis that it would compromise values and put their teams and those receiving aid at risk. They have said the GHF can be used by Israel to forcibly displace the population by requiring them to move near a few distribution hubs or else face starvation. The UN has also opposed the use of facial recognition to vet those receiving aid.
How has Israel starved the people of Gaza?
One in five Palestinians in the Gaza Strip is facing starvation because of Israel’s nearly three-month-long blockade of the Strip. The chaos at the distribution point underscores the staggering level of hunger gripping Gaza.
According to the latest Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) report, 1.95 million people - 93 percent of the enclave’s population - are facing acute food shortages.
Certain governorates are experiencing more severe levels of hunger, namely in North Gaza.
The IPC says Israel’s continued blockade “would likely result in further mass displacement within and across governorates”, as items essential for people’s survival will be depleted.
This article contains embedded videos. To view them in full, follow the link below.
(c) 2025, Al Jazeera
Comments