Over the weekend, Israeli troops once again unleashed a wave of military violence upon Palestinian civilians in Gaza, killing at least 44 people in a series of attacks. According to local officials, many of those killed were simply trying to obtain desperately needed food for their families.

On Friday, approximately 25 Palestinians were killed by the Israel Defense Force (IDF) as they waited for aid trucks south of Netzarim in the central Gaza Strip. The local Palestinian health authority reported that the victims had gathered in hopes of receiving food, only to be mowed down by Israeli fire.

This massacre is the latest in an ongoing campaign of violence targeting civilians at aid distribution points. The IDF responded to inquiries about the incident by once again claiming their troops had fired warning shots at “suspected militants” who advanced toward them in a crowd.

According to the IDF, an Israeli aircraft then “struck and eliminated the suspects.” The IDF statement acknowledged that others were hurt in the incident and that the military was conducting a review. The Israeli military’s justification—that militants were advancing in a crowd—is a transparent cover for indiscriminate use of lethal force against unarmed civilians.

The violence in Gaza was not confined to aid distribution sites. Israeli military strikes across the Gaza Strip killed at least 19 more Palestinians on Friday, including 12 people in a single house in Deir Al-Balah in central Gaza.

Meanwhile, the Wafa news agency said that at least three people were killed and several others wounded by an IDF drone strike that targeted Palestinians in al-Mawasi in southern Gaza. Al Jazeera said Wafa reported, “the attack targeted a tent sheltering displaced members of the Shurrab family. The tent was in an area the Israeli military had previously designated as a ‘safe zone.’”

Al Jazeera also reported that in the last 48 hours, at least 202 people have been killed, including four recovered bodies after Israeli attacks, and 1,037 wounded by Israeli attacks across Gaza, the Health Ministry reported.

The ongoing genocide against Palestinian civilians in Gaza must be understood in the context of the broader war aims of US imperialism and its Israeli attack dog in the Middle East. The fascist government of Benjamin Netanyahu, working under the direction of the Trump administration, has pursued a policy of collective punishment against the entire population of Gaza. The objective is to use mass murder and starvation to force Palestinians into exile so that the Zionist regime can annex and settle the Gaza strip.

This aim is also connected to the war with Iran. The Netanyahu regime has used the pretext of “security” to justify its relentless bombardment and starvation in Gaza as it seeks to solidify US-Israeli domination over the entire Middle East, including through a regime change operation in Iran.

One of the most barbaric developments in the ethnic cleansing campaign in Gaza has been the establishment of the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), a privately-owned US-Israeli program that is taking over aid delivery in the territory.

The GHF is run by military contractors and not humanitarian professionals. It operates under strict Israeli government oversight, lacking any transparency, independence or accountability. This arrangement has effectively militarized aid distribution, turning it into a tool of the war of extermination.

Since the GHF began operating, Israeli forces have repeatedly opened fire on Palestinians gathered at its aid distribution points. Witnesses have described scenes of horror, with Israeli troops, tanks and drones targeting crowds of desperate people seeking food.

On June 17, for example, Israeli soldiers opened fire on thousands of Palestinians waiting for flour in Khan Younis, killing at least 51 and injuring over 200. The Red Cross field hospital has been overwhelmed with casualties, many of whom are children and women.

The GHF’s limited number of distribution points—just four in southern Gaza—cannot meet the enormous scale of the need, and the organization has ignored the broader medical, water and shelter emergencies facing the population.

By blocking legitimate aid agencies like the UN from reaching the Palestinians, the GHF has created a parallel, politicized system that serves the interests of the Israeli state. It is becoming increasingly obvious that GHF’s operations are part of a deliberate strategy to concentrate Palestinians in small areas near the Egyptian border, paving the way for their permanent expulsion from the Strip.

The Israeli military has offered a litany of justifications for its repeated shootings of civilians at aid distribution points. In almost every case, the IDF claims that “suspects” or “militants” were approaching their forces, necessitating warning shots and, ultimately, lethal force.

The military insists that its actions are intended to control crowds and prevent security threats, but eyewitnesses and humanitarian organizations have consistently reported that the shootings are unprovoked and indiscriminate.

A typical IDF statement reads: “The troops carried out warning fire, and after the suspects failed to retreat, additional shots were directed near a few individual suspects who advanced toward the troops.”

The IDF often claims ignorance of civilian casualties or downplays the numbers, even as local hospitals are overwhelmed with the dead and wounded. The IDF’s rules of engagement authorize the use of lethal force against any Palestinian who comes close to its forces, regardless of whether they pose a genuine threat.

International aid organizations have been unanimous in their condemnation of Israel’s actions and the role of the GHF in facilitating the killing of civilians. The Red Cross has stated that the “vast majority” of patients arriving at its field hospital since the GHF aid initiative began have been injured while attempting to access aid or while near distribution points.

The organization has warned that civilians trying to access humanitarian assistance should not face such a danger, yet this is precisely what is happening every day in Gaza.

UNICEF and other UN agencies have refused to work with the GHF, citing its lack of independence and its complicity in the militarization of aid. UN Secretary-General António Guterres has called for investigations into the repeated massacres at aid distribution points, stating that it is “unacceptable” for people to risk their lives simply to get food. The international community’s warnings have gone unheeded, as the killing continues with impunity.

According to the Palestinian health ministry, more than 400 have been killed at or near aid distribution points since late May alone. This figure is in addition to the tens of thousands killed since the Israeli offensive began in October 2023.

While precise numbers are difficult to verify due to Israeli restrictions on international media and the collapse of local institutions, Palestinian estimates place the total number of deaths since October 2023 at 55,700, the majority being women and children.

The continuous killing of Palestinian aid seekers by Israeli troops is a deliberate policy of Netanyahu’s government. By militarizing aid and using starvation as a weapon of war, Israel is committing crimes against humanity daily with the endorsement of the US and other imperialist powers.