IDF claims troops were in danger as crowd rushed towards supplies
Mainstream media and the Israeli military were lambasted online Thursday after Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) soldiers shot into a huge crowd of Palestinians and CNN downplayed the massacre as a “chaotic incident.”
A CNN headline reads, “At least 100 killed and 700 injured in chaotic incident where IDF opened fire as people waited for food in Gaza, Palestinian officials say.”
The current toll being reported by the press is 104 deaths and 760 injuries.
The numbers came from the Palestinian Ministry of Health in Gaza and have yet to be verified.
However, an Israeli official did confirm to CNN that IDF troops fired live rounds on people surrounding an aid truck, claiming “the crowd approached the forces in a manner that posed a threat to the troops, who responded to the threat with live fire.”
The death count is expected to rise as the street where the attack took place is said to be littered with bodies emergency crews cannot get to due to rubble blocking the way.
The footage below claims to show the moment IDF opened fire on the civilians, according to Al Jazeera Arabic.
Many people slammed Israel and the media on 𝕏.
“It’s called genocide, not a ‘chaotic incident,’” wrote Lebanese journalist Sarah Abdallah.
She also claimed the president of Colombia declared the murders an example of “genocide” by Israel.
The Joe Biden White House called the killings “alarming,” but as journalist Glenn Greenwald accurately points out, the bombs and bullets used against the Palestinians were paid for by the U.S. government.
U.N. Special Rapporteur on the right to food Michael Fakhri said this isn’t the first time IDF has shot at Palestinians trying to access food, telling Democracy Now it appears as if Israel is trying to intentionally starve the millions of people living in Gaza.
This might be a turning point in the deadly conflict as millions of people across the globe are praying for it to end.
