The Israel Defense Forces said Thursday it is building two new food distribution centers in southern Gaza as part of preparations for a mass evacuation from Gaza City expected next week.
The facilities, operated by the U.S.-based Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), will replace the aid hub in Rafah’s Tel al-Sultan neighborhood, where chaotic scenes in recent months left scores of Palestinians dead, reportedly in part due to Israeli fire. With their completion, five GHF food distribution sites will be active across Gaza.
The establishment of the aid centers
(Video: IDF)
The military said the move is part of both expanding humanitarian aid and preparing for the evacuation of Gaza City residents to the south ahead of a planned Israeli ground assault to capture the city.
Maj. Gen. Ghassan Alian, head of Israel’s Coordination of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT), issued a message in Arabic to Gaza residents via Facebook. “In recent weeks, Hamas has led a false starvation campaign,” Alian said. “Unlike Hamas’ claims, Israel is not pursuing starvation, but preventing it. More than 300 trucks enter Gaza daily, most carrying food. We opened four crossings and streamlined collection, leading to lower food prices and improved access.”
He added that the military is preparing to expand operations against Hamas in Gaza City while ensuring safe passage south for civilians. “We are setting up new field hospitals, allowing the entry of more tents and medical supplies, and making sure humanitarian aid reaches you directly, not Hamas,” Alian said.
The humanitarian crisis in Gaza has triggered global outrage and mounting diplomatic pressure on Israel to end the war. Israel insists that Hamas is inflating famine claims for propaganda, noting that some widely shared images of malnourished children were of patients with preexisting conditions. Still, Israel has expanded aid deliveries since halting them entirely after a cease-fire collapsed in March.
According to the IDF, more than 2.3 million weekly food packages have been distributed by GHF at four centers since late May.
Meanwhile, Reuters reported Thursday that 500 of the UN Human Rights Office’s 2,000 staff signed a letter demanding that High Commissioner Volker Türk explicitly label Israel’s campaign in Gaza as “ongoing genocide.”
The employees wrote that the UN has a “legal and moral responsibility to condemn genocide” and warned that failure to do so would undermine the credibility of both the UN and the human rights system. They cited the 1994 Rwandan genocide as an example of UN's inaction.
While many international human rights groups, including Israeli organizations, have already accused Israel of genocide, UN officials have previously said that only international courts can make such determinations.
The UN rights office said it was “deeply shaken” by the situation in Gaza and acknowledged internal debates about its response. In his reply to staff, Türk, who has repeatedly criticized Israel during the war, wrote: “We all feel moral outrage at the atrocities we are witnessing, as well as frustration at the international community’s failure to end them. We must remain united in the face of this calamity.”