[News] Survivors of Gaza’s ‘Flour Massacre’

[Anti-Imperialist News]

palestinechronicle.com
<https://www.palestinechronicle.com/palestine-chronicle-speaks-to-the-survivors-of-gazas-flour-massacre-special-report/>
Palestine Chronicle Speaks to the Survivors of Gaza’s ‘Flour Massacre’ -
SPECIAL REPORTMarch 2, 2024
------------------------------
Israeli forces shelled hundreds of Palestinians awaiting humanitarian aid.
(Photo: via QNN)

*By Abdallah Aljamal – Gaza
<https://www.palestinechronicle.com/writers/abdallah-aljamal>*

The Palestine Chronicle spoke with three survivors of what has been called
the ‘flour massacre’, which resulted in the killing and wounding of nearly
1,000 Palestinians waiting for humanitarian aid.

“We were surprised by the occupation’s gunfire and the killing of dozens
while we were waiting for food aid”.

This is what Jihad Rajab, a survivor of the ‘flour massacre’, told The
Palestine Chronicle.

At least 112 Palestinians were killed and more than 750 wounded on
Thursday, February 29, after Israeli troops opened fire on hundreds of
Palestinians waiting for food aid at the Nabulsi Roundabout, in the Sheikh
Ajleen district, southwest of Gaza City.

‘As We Waited for the Trucks’

Rajab, along with his cousin, went to the roundabout to wait for
humanitarian trucks, with the hope that they could finally obtain some
flour.

“For over two months, my family hasn’t tasted bread,” Rajab told us, “this
is why we decided to go.”

“The trucks were supposed to arrive on Wednesday. However, we waited for
the whole day and nothing came. We all decided to sleep there and wait for
the trucks,” he continued.

“We were sitting on the beach and it was extremely cold. But hunger was
stronger than anything else and thousands of people gathered there to get
some food. There is nothing to eat in Gaza City and we are living in
difficult conditions”,

“As soon as the trucks entered the area, Israeli forces started firing
heavily, resulting in the killing and wounding of scores of people,” Rajab
said.

“The occupation did not spare us, and they deliberately fired at us as we
were awaiting the aid convoy,” he added.
*‘The Occupation Killed Us Twice’*

“Despite my old age, I was standing in line after a very cold night, like
all residents of Gaza City,” Hajj Mahmoud Daghmash told The Palestine
Chronicle.

“We had been waiting for hours when we finally spotted the trucks. At that
very moment, the Israeli occupation opened fire at us with gunfire and
artillery shelling,” Daghmash continued.

“Fear filled all our hearts, and people started running everywhere. We
didn’t know where to hide. The screams of the wounded, women, and children
were heard everywhere.”

“The occupation killed us twice,” Daghmas explained: “Once when it shelled
our homes, and then again by starving us.”

“I can endure hunger, but my children and family cannot, and it is
extremely painful not being able to provide for my children and family. All
the people in that line were only hoping to return to their families with a
bag of flour. Instead, over 100 people returned as martyrs, and more than
800 returned as wounded.”

Daghmas explained that after over one month the occupation had allowed
trucks to enter and classified the Sheikh Ajleen area as the only corridor
for aid.

“This is a new war crime committed by the occupation against innocent
civilians in the Gaza Strip,” he concluded.
*‘Children Crying from Hunger’*

Yahya Salamia was also among the Palestinians waiting for humanitarian
trucks in Gaza City. He was particularly outraged when he realized how
Israel tried to distort the facts and claim that Palestinians posed a
threat to the military vehicles.

“We were all civilians, unarmed. We only wanted to return to our families
with a bag of flour and some food,” he told us.

“Ben Gvir bragged about the massacre and thanked the soldiers. This is the
biggest evidence that the occupation continues to commit genocide against
the people of Gaza,” Salamia continued.

“The occupation tries to deny the charge of genocide in the International
Court of Justice, but every day it commits dozens of crimes and works with
all its might to exterminate the people of Gaza and displace them from
their lands.”

Salamia also said that the cameras documented part of the massacre and that
footage confirmed that Israel deliberately killed civilians as they
attempted to obtain flour from the trucks.

“Yes, I returned to my family safely, and I escaped death, but I failed to
provide food for them,” he said.

“My heart aches for all those who were martyred and injured in the
massacre, and I am deeply saddened because I couldn’t provide food for my
family.”

Salamia called on the world to intervene to stop Israeli crimes, and bring
food to the people of Gaza, especially in the north.

“We are dying of hunger every moment, and death from hunger is more painful
than death from bombing. The crying of children from hunger does not stop,
and we have nothing to feed them. Save our children, and stop the
occupation’s crimes against us.”

*(The Palestine Chronicle)*


–* Abdallah Aljamal is a Gaza-based journalist. He is a correspondent for
The Palestine Chronicle in the Gaza Strip.*
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