TEHRAN – Dozens of Palestinians have been killed and many others injured while attempting to access food in Gaza.

The victims, suffering from hunger, had been waiting at an aid distribution site in Khan Younis operated by the so-called Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), an organization backed by the United States and the Israeli occupation.

The Gaza Health Ministry reports that at least 45 civilians were killed by gunfire from Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) with many others injured.

The barely functioning hospital in the area, Nasser Hospital, is overwhelmed, with many of the wounded lying on the floor as medical staff struggle to treat them.

This could be the deadliest incident so far in the near-daily shootings occurring around GHF aid distribution centers.

Witnesses say the IOF opened fire and shelled an area near a junction east of Khan Younis, where thousands of Palestinians had gathered in hopes of receiving food parcels.

The latest massacre comes after 37 people were killed in shootings near food distribution centers run by private U.S. contractors guarded by the IOF on Monday, according to the Palestinian news agency Wafa.

Since May 27, a total of 338 Palestinians have been killed and 2,831 wounded while seeking aid.

Citing medical sources, Wafa reported that since May 27, a total of 338 Palestinians have been killed and 2,831 wounded while seeking aid. It remains unclear whether the latest victims are included in these figures.

Additional casualties were also reported in the northwestern part of Beit Lahia, where IOF opened fire on civilians trying to access humanitarian aid.

These incidents have been condemned by UN experts as part of a broader pattern of IOF assaults on the Gaza Strip.

On Monday, UN human rights chief Volker Turk accused the Israeli regime of weaponizing food and called for an investigation into the shootings near GHF distribution sites.

IOF warplanes have also bombed northern areas of Khan Younis as well as other parts of the coastal enclave.

Since October 7, 2023, the IOF, backed by America, has conducted a campaign of genocide against the population of Gaza, marked by widespread killing, starvation, destruction, and forced displacement.

Despite international appeals and rulings by the International Court of Justice to halt the genocidal war, the campaign has resulted in more than 184,000 Palestinians killed or injured, most of them women and children.

Over 11,000 remain missing, hundreds of thousands have been displaced, and a severe famine has claimed the lives of many, including children.