As many as 170 charities and aid groups called for the end of the U.S.- and Israel-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) and accused Israeli forces and armed groups of “routinely” opening fire on Palestinians seeking aid.
Some of the world’s largest charity organizations, including Oxfam, Amnesty International and Save the Children, said in a joint statement Tuesday that more than 500 Palestinians had been killed and almost 4,000 injured in less than four weeks while trying to access or distribute food in Gaza.
They added that GHF's plan was forcing 2 million starving people to trek through dangerous terrain and active conflict zones to reach the militarized distribution sites, where they have to “fight” for limited food supplies in “chaotic enclosures.”
“These areas have become sites of repeated massacres in blatant disregard for international humanitarian law,” they said in their statement.
Calling the humanitarian aid distribution centers “death traps,” the Palestinian Health Ministry said in a statement Tuesday that 583 people had died since GHF first began operating in Gaza in late May following a three-month Israeli blockade on aid distribution.
Since then, there have been almost daily claims of the Israeli military deliberately firing at aid recipients, accusations that the IDF has denied. The United Nations condemned the GHF aid system, with Secretary-General António Guterres on Friday calling it “inherently unsafe.”
Rebutting the claims in a statement Tuesday, GHF said it was “providing millions of meals each day directly to the Palestinian people who deserve and need aid.”
“Instead of bickering and throwing insults from the sidelines, we would welcome other humanitarian groups to join us and feed the people in Gaza,” it added.
Israel, which has defended GHF by saying it provides direct assistance to Palestinians while bypassing Hamas interference, said in a statement Monday that it would “examine” the reports of civilians being hurt at the aid sites and add new fencing and sign posting to improve access.
The Israeli Foreign Affairs Ministry on Tuesday accused Hamas of firing at civilians at humanitarian sites and of falsely blaming the IDF to “disrupt aid efforts and keep the people of Gaza away from much needed aid,” according to a post on X.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is set to meet with President Donald Trump in Washington early next week, a White House official confirmed, as pressure to end the war in Gaza intensifies.
“I am expected to leave next week for meetings in the United States with President Trump,” Netanyahu said Tuesday. “These things come in the wake of the great victory we achieved in Operation ‘Rising lion,’” he added, referring to Israel’s recent military assault on Iran.
The Israeli leader added that along with Trump, he would also meet other senior U.S. officials, including Vice President JD Vance and special envoy Steve Witkoff. “We have a few things to close before then in order to reach the trade agreement in addition to other things,” he said.
Trump also said Tuesday that he would discuss the situation in Gaza with Netanyahu during the upcoming visit.
The president in an earlier post on Truth Social on Saturday said that Netanyahu was “right now in the process of negotiating a Deal with Hamas, which will include getting the Hostages back.” On Sunday, he again urged both sides to make progress on the stalled ceasefire talks. “MAKE THE DEAL IN GAZA. GET THE HOSTAGES BACK!!!” Trump wrote in a separate post.
A two-month ceasefire collapsed in March after Israel renewed its military assault on Gaza and imposed a total aid blockade for 11 weeks. Hundreds of aid distribution points across Gaza previously run by the U.N. were later reduced to four sites operated by GHF, where deadly incidents have been reported nearly daily.
The Israeli military acknowledges involvement in many of these incidents, often saying that soldiers fire warning shots or at individuals who appear to pose a threat or are in unauthorized areas. GHF says the attacks happen outside its distribution sites.
Meanwhile, Israeli forces continued to launch airstrikes on Gaza after earlier issuing one of the largest evacuation orders since March, killing at least 85 people in the last day, according to Dr. Marwan Al-Hams, the director of Field Hospitals.
On Monday, an Israeli strike hit a seaside café along the coast of Gaza City, killing more than 30 people, Al-Hams added.
The Baqa Café was a beachside hub where journalists often gathered to charge devices or get internet connection. Video captured by NBC News’ crew on the ground showed bodies inside and outside the café, including a woman sitting in a chair who was decapitated by the strike.
The recovered bodies of those dead and injured were brought to Al Shifa Hospital by rescue teams shortly after.
“We heard the blast and ran. I’ve never seen anything like it. Blood everywhere,” Salam Abu Hasir, the café’s manager, told NBC News.
“They just wanted to connect to the outside world,” he added.
