U.S.-backed aid group in Gaza says outside agitators caused stampede that killed 20

A stampede that killed at least 20 people waiting for food at an aid distribution center in the Gaza Strip on Wednesday was caused by armed agitators who had infiltrated the crowd of hungry residents, officials with a U.S.-backed humanitarian organization said.

The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation says it has credible reasons to believe that armed Hamas militants fomented the unrest at their distribution site on the outskirts of Khan Younis, the largest city in southern Gaza.

“This was a calculated provocation [and] part of a pattern of targeted efforts by Hamas and its allies to dismantle our life-saving operation,” GHF spokesman Chapin Fay told reporters. “These efforts have intensified in recent weeks, coinciding with active ceasefire negotiations. It’s no secret that Hamas is pushing for GHF removal from Gaza as part of these talks.”

The U.N., which has criticized the GHF since it began operating in the Gaza Strip in May, said it has recorded more than 670 deaths in the vicinity of the group’s aid distribution sites.

“We’ve been banned from bringing any humanitarian assistance into Gaza for more than four months,” said Juliette Touma, a spokeswoman for the U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees, known as UNRWA. “Medicine and food are going to soon expire if we’re not able to get those supplies to people in Gaza who need it most.”

Mr. Fay said Hamas has killed several of its local workers and placed bounties on the heads of their U.S. security personnel. An American worker was threatened with a firearm by someone in the crowd, officials said.

“Hamas is determined to eliminate GHF because we are effective, because we’re independent, and because we’ve delivered more than 76 million meals directly to Palestinian families,” he said.

Officials with the GHF said Wednesday’s incident follows a “deeply troubling pattern” in recent days, including false messages about aid site openings that fuel confusion and disorder. They issued a warning in Arabic late Tuesday for residents of the Palestinian enclave to refer only to official GHF channels for updates on their operations.

“We mourn the lives lost today, and we remain committed to providing humanitarian aid as safely and responsibly as possible,” the GHF said in a statement.

Mr. Fay dismissed media reports that the GHF security personnel used excessive force against residents of the Palestinian enclave.

“At no point was tear gas deployed, nor were shots fired into the crowd,” he said. “This is the Hamas playbook: provoke violence, then flood social media with falsehoods, and then feed those falsehoods to the media.”

Mr. Fay said “limited” use of pepper spray was deployed against protestors to protect against additional loss of life. Warning shots were fired into the air at one of the distribution centers when GHF personnel noticed that a child was being trampled in the crowd.

“We came to Gaza to help feed people, not to fight a narrative war. But Hamas has made it clear that it will do anything to stop us, including endangering civilians [and] targeting our workers,” he said. “Despite the threats, the lies, and the violence, GHF will continue doing what we came here to do: deliver food, protect our teams, and serve the people of Gaza with dignity and care.”

The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation was established to distribute humanitarian aid inside the Gaza Strip. Israel had faced widespread criticism for a two-month aid blockade that officials in Jerusalem said was an attempt to force Hamas to surrender and release the remaining hostages.