DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — On Sunday, Israeli forces shot and killed four Palestinians seeking assistance as they traveled through a military zone near Gaza City, according to a hospital and witnesses. This route is commonly used to access a food distribution center.

After 22 months of conflict, Gaza City is facing severe hunger, while Israel’s military prepares for a potential offensive to capture the city, which may occur in the coming days. The Israeli defense minister has cautioned that the city, home to hundreds of thousands, might face devastation.

Sources from Al-Awda Hospital and eyewitnesses informed The Associated Press that the Palestinians lost their lives when troops fired at individuals moving towards a site operated by the U.S.-supported Gaza Humanitarian Foundation in the Netzarim corridor, located several hundreds of meters (yards) away.

“The gunfire was indiscriminate,” said Mohamed Abed, a father of two from the Bureij refugee camp.

Abed and Aymed Sayyad, who were among those seeking help, reported that gunfire erupted when individuals at the front of the crowd surged towards the site before its scheduled opening. Sayyad mentioned assisting two people injured by gunfire.

“This incident did not take place close to our location nor happened as depicted,” stated the GHF in an email. The Israeli military did not immediately provide a comment.

Eight more malnutrition-related deaths

On Sunday, Gaza’s Health Ministry reported eight additional deaths linked to malnutrition, including that of a child. This increase brings the war-related malnutrition fatalities to 289, of which 115 are children.

Palestinians by the thousands Sunday again trekked for the chance to grab a sack of flour or other food staples for their families.

At least 62,686 Palestinians have been killed in the war, according to the ministry, including missing people confirmed dead by a special ministry judicial committee.

Of those, more than 2,000 Palestinians have been killed and more than 13,500 wounded while seeking aid at distribution points or along convoy routes used by the United Nations and other aid groups, according to the Health Ministry.

The Health Ministry does not say how many of the dead are fighters or civilians but says around half have been women and children. The ministry is part of the Hamas-run government and staffed by medical professionals. The U.N. and independent experts consider it the most reliable source on war casualties. Israel disputes its figures but has not provided its own.

The world’s leading authority on food crises, the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification, said Friday that famine is occurring in Gaza City and could spread south to Deir al-Balah and Khan Younis by the end of next month.

Aid groups have long warned that the war and months of Israeli restrictions on food and medical supplies entering Gaza are causing starvation. Israel has denied the existence of widespread hunger, calling reports of starvation “lies” promoted by Hamas.

‘Non-stop explosions’ near Gaza City

In Jabaliya, the densely populated refugee camp just north of Gaza City, residents said they endured heavy explosions overnight. Days after Israel’s military announced it was intensifying its operations in the area and mobilizing tens of thousands of reservists to take the city, they said they lived in constant fear.

One displaced Palestinian there, Ossama Matter, said neighborhoods had been razed beyond recognition.

“They want it like Rafah,” he said, referring to the southern Gaza city destroyed earlier in the war. “There have been non-stop explosions and strikes in the past days.”

While fleeing Jabaliya, teacher Salim Dhaher said he saw robots planting explosives as troops advanced. Dhaher said he feared it was part of a larger effort to forcibly remove Palestinians from the north.

The aim is clear, he said: “To destroy everything above the ground and force the transfer.”

There was little sign of hundreds of thousands of Palestinians evacuating south ahead of Israel’s invasion of Gaza City, which Israel says is still a Hamas stronghold. Many are exhausted by repeated displacements and unconvinced that any area — including so-called humanitarian zones — offers safety.

The war began when Hamas-led militants abducted 251 people and killed around 1,200 people, mostly civilians, in the Oct. 7, 2023, attack. Most of the hostages have been released in ceasefires or other deals but 50 remain in Gaza, with around 20 believed to be alive.

Hostages’ loved ones fear a new offensive will endanger them further, and many Israelis are increasingly vocal about the need for a deal to stop the fighting and bring everyone home. A new call-up of reservists has added to the anxiety.

But efforts toward a ceasefire appear to be waiting for Israel’s next move, after Hamas said it accepted a new proposal from Arab mediators.

“We agreed to a partial deal, while we also expressed readiness for a comprehensive one, HOWEVER, (Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin) Netanyahu rejects all solutions,” Hamas said in a statement Sunday.

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Magdy reported from Cairo. Metz reported from Jerusalem.

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