The United Nations Office at Geneva
Multimedia Newsroom
UN Human Rights Office spokesperson Thameen Al-Kheetan today called on the Israeli military to stop shooting at hungry people trying to get food at aid distribution points operated by the “Gaza Humanitarian Fund” in Gaza.
“Since the “Gaza Humanitarian Foundation” started operating on 27 May, the Israeli military has shelled and shot Palestinians trying to reach the distribution points, leading to many fatalities. Reportedly, over 410 Palestinians have been killed as a result,” said Al-Thameen.
Addressing the bi-weekly press briefing in Geneva, the UN Human Rights Office spokesperson said over 410 Palestinians have reportedly been killed as a result of the Israeli military shelling and shooting at Palestinians trying to reach the distribution points. He said at least 93 others have been reportedly killed by the Israeli army while attempting to approach the very few aid convoys of the UN and other humanitarian organisations.
“Each of these killings must be promptly and impartially investigated, and those responsible must be held to account. The killing and wounding of civilians resulting from the unlawful use of firearms constitute a grave breach of international law, and a war crime,” he said.
“The Israeli military must stop shooting at people trying to get food. Israel must also allow the entry of food and other humanitarian assistance needed to sustain the lives of Palestinians in Gaza in accordance with international law and humanitarian principles. It must immediately lift its unlawful restrictions on the work of UN and other humanitarian actors,” he added.
“Third States have the obligation to take concrete steps to ensure that Israel, the occupying power in Gaza, complies with its duty to ensure that sufficient food and lifesaving necessities are provided to the population,” said Al-Kheetan.
For more information and media requests, please contact:
Liz Throssell: +41 22 917 9296 / elizabeth.throssell@un.org
Thameen Al-Kheetan: +41 22 917 4232 / thameen.alkheetan@un.org
Tag and share - Twitter: @UNHumanRights and Facebook: unitednationshumanrights
UN Human Rights Spokesperson Thameen Al-Kheetan on Palestinians killed seeking food in Gaza
TRT: SOURCE: OHCHR
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: English/NATS
ASPECT RATIO: 16:9
DATELINE: 24 June 2025 GENEVA, SWITZERLAND
- Exterior shot: Palais des Nations
- SOUNDBITE (English)—Thameen Al-Kheetan, Spokesperson for the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR): “Desperate, hungry people in Gaza continue to face the inhumane choice of either starving to death or risk being killed while trying to get food.”
- SOUNDBITE (English)—Thameen Al-Kheetan, Spokesperson for the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR): “Since the “Gaza Humanitarian Foundation” started operating on 27 May, the Israeli military has shelled and shot Palestinians trying to reach the distribution points, leading to many fatalities. Reportedly, over 410 Palestinians have been killed as a result.”
- SOUNDBITE (English)—Thameen Al-Kheetan, Spokesperson for the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR): “Each of these killings must be promptly and impartially investigated, and those responsible must be held to account. The killing and wounding of civilians resulting from the unlawful use of firearms constitute a grave breach of international law, and a war crime.”
- SOUNDBITE (English)—Thameen Al-Kheetan, Spokesperson for the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR): “The Israeli military must stop shooting at people trying to get food. Israel must also allow the entry of food and other humanitarian assistance needed to sustain the lives of Palestinians in Gaza, in accordance with international law and humanitarian principles. It must immediately lift its unlawful restrictions on the work of UN and other humanitarian actors.”
- SOUNDBITE (English)—Thameen Al-Kheetan, Spokesperson for the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR): “Third States have the obligation to take concrete steps to ensure that Israel, the occupying power in Gaza, complies with its duty to ensure that sufficient food and lifesaving necessities are provided to the population.”
Similar Stories
3
36
1
2
Edited News , Statements , Images , Conferences | HRC , OCHA , UNOG
A record 383 aid workers were killed last year with hundreds more wounded, kidnapped and detained, the UN’s top aid official said on Tuesday in a call for accountability, at a solemn ceremony in Geneva to mark World Humanitarian Day.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR
UN Human Rights Office spokesperson Thameen Al-Kheetan made the following statement at today’s biweekly press briefing in Geneva:
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR
“In Gaza, the Israeli army has intensified its attacks in the north of the strip,” UN Human Rights Office spokesperson Thameen Al-Kheetan told the biweekly press briefing in Geneva on Tuesday.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , OCHA
Gaza: Aid insufficient to avert ‘widespread starvation’ as Israeli military ramp-up forces more people to flee
The small trickle of aid entering Gaza is totally insufficient to alleviate starvation and displacement in the Strip, UN humanitarians said on Tuesday.
1
1
1
Edited News | WHO
Gaza: Hospitals continue to overflow with people injured while seeking food - WHO
As besieged Palestinian civilians face widespread malnutrition and starvation, hospitals in the Strip are increasingly overwhelmed by the influx of victims of shootings and other injuries at food distribution areas, warns the World Health Organization.
1
1
1
Edited News | UNHCR , WHO , UNMAS
Urgent help is needed to halt a deadly cholera outbreak that is sweeping across Sudan, UN agencies said on Friday, while warning that communities continue to be terrorized by parties to the conflict even as they flee violence.
2
2
1
2
Press Conferences , Edited News , Images | UNEP
Negotiations got under way at UN Geneva on Tuesday to agree on a legally binding treaty to curb plastic pollution, with delegates from nearly 180 countries attending.
1
1
1
Edited News | OCHA , UNICEF
Gaza: Hundreds of trucks per day of free aid needed “for months”, in addition to commercial supplies - OCHA
Despite the tactical pauses Israel introduced last week to allow some safe passage for humanitarian convoys, the amount of aid that has entered Gaza remains by far insufficient for the starving population, and UN trucks continue to face impediments on their way to delivering aid.
1
1
1
Edited News | UN WOMEN
Aid agencies echoed wider warnings of growing signs of widespread starvation in Gaza on Tuesday, as UN-partnered international food security experts released their most dire assessment yet of the situation in the wartorn enclave.
1
1
1
Edited News | IOM , UNDP , UNHCR
Sudan: urgent help needed as more than 1.3 million war-displaced people begin to return home
As conflict rages on across parts of Sudan, pockets of relative safety have emerged in the past four month, spurring more than one million internally displaced Sudanese to make their way home, says the International Organization for Migration (IOM). A further 320,000 cross-border refugees have come back to Sudan since last year, mainly from Egypt and South Sudan, to assess the current situation before deciding to return to their country for good.
1
1
1
Edited News | UNRWA , WHO
Gaza: SOS messages describe people fainting from hunger; UN health worker detained
Worrying alerts from United Nations staff in Gaza who have been fainting from hunger and exhaustion over the past 48 hours have increased fears for people’s survival in the devastated enclave, UN humanitarians said on Tuesday.
1
1
1
Edited News | UNHCR , UNOG
Over 11.6 million refugees risk losing aid access due to funding cuts, says UNHCR
Approximately one in three refugees and other vulnerable individuals normally supported by the UN refugee agency (UNHCR) are expected to lose out from funding cuts, it said on Friday.