For the third day in a row, the IDF says troops opened fire on Palestinian suspects who approached forces around 500 meters from a humanitarian aid distribution site in the Rafah area of southern Gaza. The Hamas-run health ministry in Gaza reports 24 dead and dozens wounded in the incident. The tolls cannot be verified. According to the IDF, while crowds of Palestinians were making their way to the aid distribution site in Rafah via organized routes, troops spotted several suspects approaching the forces while deviating from the pre-approved path, around half a kilometer from the aid complex. "The forces fired warning shots, and after they did not disperse, additional fire was carried out next to several suspects who approached the forces," the military says. The IDF says it is aware of the reports of casualties, and is investigating the incident further. The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, the US- and Israel-backed body in charge of the aid distribution, says aid was handed out this morning without incident. The IDF says that it is allowing GHF to operate "independently to distribute aid to Gaza residents and prevent it from reaching the Hamas terror organization." "IDF troops do not prevent the arrival of Gaza residents to the distribution sites. The shooting was carried out about half a kilometer from the distribution site, toward individual suspects approaching the forces in a way that threatened them," the military says. GHF has denied previous accounts of chaos and gunfire around its sites, which are in Israeli military zones. The IDF has acknowledged firing warning shots on previous occasions outside the distribution centers.
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