February 29, 2024 - Israel-Hamas war

Our live coverage of Israel's war with Hamas has moved here.

At least four more children have died in Gaza this week as a result of dehydration and malnutrition, said the Palestinian Ministry of Health in a statement issued Thursday.

The children died at Kamal Adwan Hospital, it added.

The death toll of children dying as a result of malnutrition and dehydration has risen to 10 in northern Gaza, the ministry said. In addition to the four children, the ministry and a local doctor previously said at least six children died — four at Kamal Adwan Hospital and two at the Al-Shifa Medical Complex — because of dire conditions at hospitals.

"Hospitals in northern Gaza are unable to provide life-saving services. The cessation of medical services in northern Gaza is a death sentence for 700,000 citizens," the statement from the health ministry read.
"We call on the international community to provide a safe humanitarian corridor for the arrival of medical and humanitarian aid and fuel to prevent the humanitarian and health catastrophe in northern Gaza."

CNN is unable to confirm the conditions of children and the cause of their deaths independently.

CNN's Kareem Khadder and Hande Atay Alam contributed to this post.

The US conducted two strikes against six mobile anti-ship cruise missiles that were ready to launch toward the Red Sea on Thursday, according to US Central Command (CENTCOM.)

In a statement, CENTCOM said the two strikes were in "self-defense."

"Earlier that evening, at approximately 5:10 p.m. (Sanna time), CENTCOM forces shot down an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) over the southern Red Sea in self-defense," CENTCOM said.

The United Arab Emirates on Thursday called for "an independent and transparent investigation" into the aid convoy tragedy in Gaza.

At least 112 people were killed and at least 760 were injured when Israel Defense Forces troops opened fire while starving Palestinian civilians were gathering around food aid trucks, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health in Gaza. 

CNN is unable to confirm these numbers independently.

The UAE also called for "the punishment of those responsible" and expressed "its deep concern over the exacerbating humanitarian catastrophe in the (Gaza) Strip that threatens further loss of innocent civilian lives," according to a statement released by the country's Ministry of Foreign Affairs. 

The ministry added that "the immediate priority is to end the escalation of military operations and achieve an immediate ceasefire."

Remember: Eyewitnesses told CNN the Israeli military opened fire on Palestinian civilians gathered near the trucks, causing drivers to speed away in panic, killing more people.

Israel offered an evolving account of the incident as the day progressed. In a briefing, Israel Defense Forces spokesperson Daniel Hagari claimed Israeli tanks had fired warning shots to disperse a crowd after seeing that people were being trampled.

The Palestinian health ministry in Gaza increased the death toll to at least 112 Thursday after Israeli troops opened fire while people awaited food and aid in northern Gaza.

The ministry added 760 people were injured.

Riyad Mansour, the Palestinian ambassador to the United Nations, told reporters later Thursday that the death toll had risen as high as 122.

CNN is unable to confirm these numbers independently.

Mansour condemned the "outrageous massacre" at the aid site and called again for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza.

What we know: Israel's military and eyewitnesses have provided contradictory accounts of the events on the ground.

Daniel Hagari, an Israel Defense Forces spokesperson, claimed Israeli tanks fired warning shots to disperse a crowd gathered around an aid convoy — after seeing that people in the crowd were being trampled.

A local journalist in Gaza, Khader Al Za’anoun, who was at the scene and witnessed the incident, said the chaos and confusion only started once Israeli forces opened fire, and that the majority of those hurt were accidentally rammed by aid trucks trying to escape.

This post has been updated with comments from the Palestinian ambassador to the UN.

Israeli tanks fired warning shots to disperse a crowd around an aid convoy in Gaza on Thursday, after seeing that people in the crowd were being trampled, Israel Defense Forces spokesperson Daniel Hagari claimed at a briefing.

The IDF has provided a conflicting account to that of eyewitnesses throughout the day.

In an update late Thursday, Hagari insisted that the tanks were at the site “to secure the humanitarian corridor” so the aid convoy could reach its destination.

The IDF released a short video, which appears to show a tank driving parallel to the crowd, several meters away.

“As you can see in this video, the tanks that were there to secure the convoy sees the Gazans being trampled and cautiously tries to disperse the mob with a few warning shots,” Hagari said.

When the crowd started to grow and “things got out of hand,” the tank retreated to avoid harming Gazans, and was "not shooting at the mob," he added.

For context: Witnesses said civilians had gathered around the aid trucks in the hope of getting food — as the enclave is on the brink of famine — and Israeli forces soon started shooting.

The aid trucks tried to escape the area, accidentally ramming others and causing further deaths and injuries, the eyewitnesses told CNN.

The majority of the casualties occurred as a result of people being rammed by aid trucks trying to escape Israeli fire, according to a local journalist in Gaza who was at the scene. He said the chaos and confusion that led to people being hit by the trucks only started once Israeli soldiers opened fire.

A spokesperson for the Israel Defense Forces on Thursday responded to CNN’s weeks-long investigation into a January incident in which indiscriminate Israeli fire killed half the members of one family.

“When we are going after Hamas, after Hamas’ leadership – and when they are hiding in the civilian arena – there are civilian consequences,” Lt. Col. Peter Lerner told CNN’s Wolf Blitzer.

A key finding of CNN’s investigation was that several members of the Abu Jibba family were killed by the shockwave of what was likely a 2,000-pound bomb dropped by the Israeli military. Such a large bomb is, by its nature, indiscriminate when civilians are present.

The IDF told CNN it was responding to fire by militants. The IDF also told CNN that it told civilians to begin evacuating days ahead of the incident. When asked for evidence of that claim, the IDF did not provide any, and survivors of the attack said they were not warned in advance.

The IDF alleged they were fired upon from near the location where the civilians were sheltering. Survivors of the attack told CNN there were no militants at their location. The IDF separately alleged there were Hamas weapons facilities several hundred meters away from the location they bombed but did not allege that the building they bombed was a Hamas facility. 

Lerner said that “watching the report, there was a lot of supposition and not fact-based analysis.” He did not go into detail. 

CNN provided the IDF with the opportunity to respond to the report’s key allegations in advance of publication, via an extensive list of questions.

Responding to CNN’s investigation, the UN secretary general’s spokesperson on Wednesday called for “a full investigation into what was reported.” The International Criminal Court prosecutor's office said it is also "aware of the incident" and following closely.

The US State Department expressed condolences for those killed and injured at an aid site in northern Gaza on Thursday, and said officials are pressing Israel for answers as they conduct an investigation.

"Far too many innocent Palestinians have been killed over the course of this conflict, not just today, but over the past nearly five months," State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said at a briefing. "We have been in touch with the Israeli government since early this morning and understand that an investigation is underway."

Miller said the US is aware of "conflicting reports" about what happened and would only say the US knows that a commercial convoy not associated with the UN was delivering the aid.

Miller also noted that aerial footage of the tragedy shows just "how desperate the situation on the ground is," Miller said. He called for Israel to "allow the entry of more assistance into Gaza, through as many points of access as possible, and to enable safe and secure distribution of that aid throughout Gaza."

Miller also said the deaths indicated how necessary it is to reach "a potential temporary ceasefire as part of a hostage deal" to allow more aid in. He said the US continues that work "day and night" through calls between US President Joe Biden and leaders in Egypt and Qatar.

Remember: At least 104 people were killed, and at least 760 were injured, when Israel Defense Forces troops used live fire as hungry and desperate Palestinian civilians were gathering around food aid trucks, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health in Gaza.

Here's what we know so far.

United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres condemned the carnage at a food aid site in Gaza, where the strip's health ministry said more than 100 people were killed.

Israeli forces opened fire as scores of people were waiting for food, according to the Palestinian health ministry in Gaza. Israel's military and eyewitnesses have provided contradictory accounts of the events on the ground.

"The desperate civilians in Gaza need urgent help, including those in the besieged north where the United Nations has not been able to deliver aid in more than a week," Stéphane Dujarric, spokesperson for the UN chief, said in a statement.

The UN was not present during the incident but called for an investigation, Dujarric said. Guterres said later Thursday the deaths would require an effective, independent investigation.

Israel Defense Forces spokesperson Lt. Col. Peter Lerner told CNN the aid trucks involved in Thursday's deadly incidents were from "international aid by governments that came on in private truckloads to move north."

"We need to do everything in order to alleviate the humanitarian situation," he said.  

Guterres said he is also "appalled" by the number of Gazans killed in the war. The health ministry in the strip announced Thursday that the death toll has surpassed 30,000, with over 70,000 injured. "Tragically, an unknown number of people lie under rubble," according to the UN statement.

He reiterated calls for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire and unconditional release of all Israeli hostages in Gaza.