Live: At least 75 killed in Israeli strikes on second day of Eid al-Adha
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An Australian doctor volunteering in Gaza has described harrowing scenes at an aid distribution point in Rafah, where Israeli forces opened fire on civilians early Sunday.
Dr Ahmed Abu Sweid, working in the emergency ward at Nasser Medical Complex in Khan Younis, said several victims were shot in the head and chest.
“We've only been here for a few days, and the extent of the trauma I've seen here is unlike anything I've seen before,” he said, describing the situation as overwhelming.
He reported “heavy human losses” and “hundreds of confirmed wounded”, adding that the facility was at full capacity and operating with limited medical supplies.
Abu Sweid said Gaza’s medical teams have been working under relentless pressure for more than 200 days. “We have been here for days, but the doctors here have been facing the same situation for the last 200 days, and they are exhausted,” he noted.
He confirmed that all those brought in were civilians. “They were asked to go collect food, but ended up with live bullet and shrapnel wounds. Most of them are in critical condition,” he said, adding that some were already dead upon arrival, “as a result of being shot in the head and chest."
الطبيب الأسترالي أحمد أبو سويد، اختصاصي طب الطوارى،
— Eye on Palestine (@EyeonPalestine) June 1, 2025
يؤكد أن النساء والأطفال والشباب يموتون أمام أعينهم في مستشفى ناصر الطبي, حيث تعجز الطواقم عن إنقاذهم وسط وضع كارثي لم يشهد مثله .من قبل، بسبب النقص الحاد في الأدوية والمعدات الأساسية pic.twitter.com/1PEzlyEk8L
Egypt and Qatar said they are still working to bridge divisions and move closer to a ceasefire agreement in Gaza, amid continued diplomatic efforts led by mediators.
In a joint statement released by Egypt’s Foreign Ministry on Sunday, both nations confirmed their coordination to “converge views and overcome disagreements” around a truce proposal backed by US President Donald Trump’s Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff.
Britain’s Minister for the Middle East, Hamish Falconer, has condemned the reported deaths near an aid distribution site in Rafah, calling the incident “appalling” and a stark reminder of the urgent need for humanitarian access.
Falconer stressed that “Israel must allow partners to operate in line with humanitarian principles and deliver lifesaving aid,” as international concern grows over Gaza’s deepening crisis.
His comments come amid mounting pressure on Israel to ease its blockade and facilitate the flow of aid into the besieged enclave, where food, fuel, and medical supplies remain critically low following almost three months of siege.
A humanitarian vessel carrying aid to Gaza has departed the Italian port of Catania, according to the Freedom Flotilla Coalition (FFC), which announced the move on Sunday. The group’s renewed mission comes after an earlier attempt was thwarted by a drone strike on a separate ship in the Mediterranean widely attributed to Israel.
The ship, Madleen, is staffed entirely by volunteers, among them Swedish climate campaigner Greta Thunberg and Irish actor Liam Cunningham. FFC described the aid onboard as “limited amounts, though symbolic,” packed in barrels destined for besieged Palestinians in Gaza.
Earlier this month, another flotilla vessel, Conscience, was struck by two drones just outside Maltese waters. FFC blamed Israel for the attack. Israeli authorities have not publicly addressed the accusation or responded to media requests.
“We are doing this because no matter what odds we are against, we have to keep trying, because the moment we stop trying is when we lose our humanity,” Thunberg told journalists at a press briefing ahead of the launch.
She went on to say, “no matter how dangerous this mission is, it is nowhere near as dangerous as the silence of the entire world in the face of the lives being genocised”.
FFC stressed that their journey was not about charity but aimed to confront what they called Israel’s “illegal siege and escalating war crimes” through non-violent, direct action.
The group’s latest mission adds to a growing chorus of civil society efforts trying to break Israel’s blockade of Gaza, now in its 17th year and widely condemned by rights groups as collective punishment.
A boat carrying humanitarian aid to Gaza has set sail from Sicily, an Italian politician told AFP.
The boat was organised by Freedom Flotilla, a coalition of groups opposed to Israel's blockade on Gaza. A dozen activists are aboard, including environmental activist Greta Thunberg, according to Marco Grimaldi, the deputy head of the Greens and Left Alliance, which has supported the mission.
"The ship carries the flag of public opinion, we are trying to make even more noise," Grimaldi said.
The "Madleen" is a small sailboat carrying "fruit juices, milk, rice, tinned food and protein bars donated by hundreds of Catania residents", journalist Andrea Legni reported from aboard.
Reporting by AFP
The head of the UN Agency for Palestinian refugees (Unrwa) said that aid distribution in Gaza has become a "death trap," after Israeli forces killed at least 31 Palestinians at GHF-run aid hubs in Rafah and near the Netzarim Corridor.
"Aid deliveries and distribution must be at scale and safe," Philippe Lazzarini said in a post on X. "In Gaza, this can be done only through the United Nations including Unwra."
#Gaza: aid distribution has become a death trap.
— Philippe Lazzarini (@UNLazzarini) June 1, 2025
Mass casualties including scores of injured & killed among starving civilians due to gunshots this morning. This is according to reports from international medics on ground.
A distribution point by the Israeli- American plan was…
Israel Katz said the army will continue advancing towards "all targets," using "all necessary means by air, land, and sea to dismantle and crush Hamas," despite the ongoing truce talks.
In a post on X, the defence minister said the military is continuing attacks “with great strength, paving the way for advancing ground forces”.
“Whoever slaughters and fights us will pay the full price,” Katz said.
“Hamas is faced with two options: either release the hostages or face annihilation.”
The Israeli military said its defence systems intercepted a missile fired from Yemen.
The Israeli military has said a ballistic missile has been fired from Yemen at Israel.
Sirens will imminently sound in Jerusalem and central Israel.
Wafa news agency is reporting that five Palestinians have been killed in an Israeli air strike targeting a house south of central Gaza's Nuseirat refugee camp.
Meanwhile, a child was killed in an Israeli attack on the Tel al-Hawa neighbourhood, southwest of Gaza City, while the al-Tuffah neighbourhood in the city's east was targeted by renewed shelling.
Israeli strikes also targeted the Bureij refugee camp in central Gaza.
The US-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) that is behind the new aid distribution points where Israeli soldiers opened fire on Palestinian aid seekers said that reports that dozens of people had been killed are "untrue".
“All aid was distributed today without incident,” an unnamed spokesperson for the GHF told AFP news agency.
“We have heard that these fake reports have been actively fomented by Hamas. They are untrue and fabricated.”
This contradicts evidence from eye witnesses, footage and statements from hospitals, which reported that at least 31 people were killed by Israeli fire at two distribution sites in Rafah in the south and near the Netzarim Corridor in central Gaza.
A Palestinian prisoner advocacy group has reported that Palestinian detainees at the Israeli Megiddo Prison are facing "systematic starvation" and beatings by Israeli prison authorities.
The Commission of Detainees and Ex-Detainees Affairs reported that Fadi Ibrahim Shami, 24, from Nablus, has lost 22 kilograms since his detention on May 11, 2023.
Furthermore, two teenaged detainees, 15-year-old Qais Nasser Shehadeh and 17-year-old Hamzeh Muheisen have endured multiple beatings during their detentions.
Meanwhile, the Palestinian Journalists Syndicate reports that 58-year-old Palestinian journalist Ali al-Samoudi is at risk of death due to medical neglect in Israeli custody.
“Samoudi suffers from chronic illnesses and requires ongoing medical care,” the Palestinian Journalists Syndicate said in a statement. “The continued medical neglect in the occupation’s prisons puts his life at serious risk.”
At least one person has been killed in an Israeli attack on the Saloul family home in central Gaza's Bureij refugee camp, the Palestinian Civil Defence is reporting.
In a statement on Telegram, the civil defence said that its team recovered one body and rescued five injured people from the rubble. Photos shared on Telegram appeared to show the delivery of casualties at al-Awda Hospital in northern Gaza.
Saudi Arabia's Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al-Saud said the Israeli government's refusal to allow a delegation of Arab ministers to the occupied West Bank showed its "extremism and rejection of peace".
His statements came during a joint press conference with counterparts from Jordan, Egypt and Bahrain in Amman.
On Saturday, Israel said it will not allow a planned meeting on Sunday in the Palestinian administrative capital of Ramallah to go ahead.
Reporting by Reuters
Israeli forces have committed a new massacre targeting Palestinian aid seekers in the Gaza Strip, killing at least 32 people and wounding scores more, the Palestinian health ministry said on Sunday.
According to eyewitnesses and local officials, Israeli troops opened fire directly on civilians gathered at two US-Israeli food distribution points in Rafah and central Gaza.
At least 31 people were killed in Rafah and one in central Gaza, while over 200 were wounded, many of them critically.
The health ministry accused Israel of using the new aid mechanism as a “trap for mass killings” and a tool for “the forced displacement of Gaza’s population.”
It added that those killed in the “massacre” had single gunshot wounds to the head or chest, indicating clear intent to kill.
Read more: Israel kills 32 starving Palestinians in latest US aid point 'massacre'
