Based on videos and witnesses, it was the Israeli military that had opened fire on the crowd of Palestinians in the incident at the GHF distribution site in southern Gaza on Sunday, CNN reported Thursday.

The IDF denied these claims and said that they had fired warning shots at a suspect a kilometer away.

The report stated that over a dozen eyewitnesses claimed that Israeli troops shot at the people on Sunday morning.

The GHF said that the IDF was operating in the area at that time.

This is a developing story.

The BBC is tripling down on a baseless, Hamas-generated claim that the IDF killed dozens of Gazan civilians as they approached a US-run aid station, despite the BBC itself debunking a video falsely purporting to prove the claim. Even the White House weighed in, slamming the British news source for taking “the word of Hamas with total truth”.

But behind the BBC may lie a nefarious agenda that will return control of the humanitarian aid to Hamas and starve the people of Gaza.

BBC and CNN repeated Hamas claims on Saturday that Israel opened fire on civilians near a new U.S.-run aid distribution center in Gaza, killing 22 people, later raising that death toll to 31. The report was based on a video posted by an Al Jazeera journalist stating: “New footage reveals the horrific massacre committed by Israeli forces near a US aid distribution site in southern Gaza.” The video purports to show the immediate aftermath of a strike, dust clouds are visible as well as bodies lying on the ground.

The United Nations quickly picked up the BBC claim and Secretary General Antonio Guterres tweeted, “I am appalled by the reports of Palestinians killed and injured while seeking aid in Gaza yesterday. It is unacceptable that Palestinians are risking their lives for food.”

While calling for an investigation, Guterres immediately accused Israel, parroting Hamas claims.

“I call for an immediate and independent investigation into these events and for perpetrators to be held accountable.”

“Israel has clear obligations under international humanitarian law to agree to and facilitate humanitarian aid. The unimpeded entry of assistance at scale to meet the enormous needs in Gaza must be restored immediately. The UN must be allowed to work in safety and security under conditions of full respect of humanitarian principles.”

Breaking: @bbcnews have become the gold standard for fake news in support of Hamas.

Watch the White House @PressSec, Karoline Leavitt single out the BBC for ridicule because of its fake news (Hamas propaganda) reporting. Oh dear me. BBC are Hamas shills. pic.twitter.com/67lTXz6s8t — David Collier (@mishtal) June 3, 2025

After an investigation, BBC posted a correction, noting that the video purporting to show the IDF attack was not as claimed: “We have geolocated the clip to a spot in Khan Younis about 4.5km (2.8 miles) from the nearest aid distribution point. The direction of shadows suggests it was filmed in the evening, not the morning, which doesn’t match accounts of the Rafah shootings.”

The BBC story was subsequently reported by The Washington Post. On Tuesday, WAPO posted a retraction on Twitter, emphasizing that it did not meet their journalistic standards:

“We’ve deleted the post below because it and early versions of the article didn’t meet Post fairness standards.

“The background: Early versions of the article on Sunday stated that Israeli troops had killed more than 30 people near a U.S. aid site in Gaza, with the headline attributing the action to “health officials.”

“The article failed to make clear if attributing the deaths to Israel was the position of the Gaza health ministry or a fact verified by The Post. The article and headline were updated on Sunday evening, making it clear that there was no consensus about who was responsible for the shootings and that there was a dispute over that question.”

“While statements from Israel that it was unaware of injuries and that an initial inquiry indicated its soldiers didn’t fire at civilians near the site were included in all versions, The Post didn’t give proper weight to Israel’s denial and gave improper certitude about what was known about any Israeli role in the shootings. The early versions fell short of Post standards of fairness and should not have been published in that form.”

Despite this revelation, the BBC posted another report on Wednesday claiming that “on Tuesday, at least 27 Palestinians were killed by Israeli fire as they attempted to collect aid near a distribution site in Gaza”. The report cited Mahmoud Basal, a spokesman for the Hamas-run Civil Defence Agency.

Palestinians carry bags of flour stolen from humanitarian aid trucks entering the Gaza Strip, in Khan Yunis, southern Gaza Strip, May 31, 2025. Photo by Abed Rahim Khatib/Flash90

BBC included the debunked incident on Saturday in its new reporting, writing, “This was the third deadly incident in as many days to occur on a route to a Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) aid site.”

The new BBC reporting did not mention its own investigation or the debunked video.

Both the US-based Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) and the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) refuted these reports, saying that they were unaware of any such deaths.

The IDF said it was “currently unaware of injuries caused by IDF fire within the Humanitarian Aid distribution side,” without specifically denying that it may have fired, for whatever reason, adding that an investigation was ongoing.

GHF said in a statement: “Aid was distributed without incident. Reports of injuries and fatalities are completely false and fabricated. Please do not be duped by them. Several major media outlets have been tricked into reporting these false reports. Thank you to the media outlets that have contacted us to confirm.”

The IDF added, “Drone footage captured earlier today (Sunday) reveals armed and masked individuals hurling rocks and firing at Gazan civilians attempting to collect looted humanitarian aid in southern Khan Yunis.”

The egregious reporting attracted the ire of the White House as press secretary Karoline Leavitt accused the British news source of parroting Hamas talking points.

“Unfortunately, unlike some in the media, we don’t take the word of Hamas with total truth.” Leavitt said at a media conference on Tuesday. “We like to look into it when they speak… unlike the BBC.”

She produced a series of images showing that the BBC reports had undergone drastic changes over a short period.

“And then, oh, wait, they had to correct and take down their entire story, saying we reviewed the footage and couldn’t find any evidence of anything,” Leavitt added.

A spokesperson for the BBC responded, claiming that the broadcaster did not remove the story after their review revealed the footage was not what it claimed to be. “We did not remove any story, and we stand by our journalism,” the spokesperson said.

“Our news stories and headlines about Sunday’s aid distribution centre incident were updated throughout the day with the latest fatality figures as they came in from various sources.”

The spokesperson did not detail what sources they used or whether any of their sources were associated with Hamas.

The Committee for Accuracy in Middle East Reporting and Analysis (CAMERA) reported on the BBC’s handling of the story. CAMERA noted that the BBC had credited a “local journalist” when, in fact, the story was written by two journalists, Rushdi Abualouf in Cairo and Anna Lamche in London, both of whom have written articles for the BBC that were later debunked. CAMERA goes on to show in detail that all of the sources used by the BBC were associated with Hamas and have been used to advance stories that later proved to be fabrications.

The BBC says the UN denies any aid is diverted, in an article with a @reuters picture of a Hamas gunman accompanying an aid truck. Can’t make it up. pic.twitter.com/XoA0FyBrAb — Eylon Levy (@EylonALevy) May 22, 2025

CAMERA came to a harsh conclusion.

“The BBC’s coverage of this latest story once again shows that far too many of its journalists adopt the default position of believing the worst about Israel even when unverified claims come from dubious and/or politically motivated sources – including “local journalists” – and serve Hamas’ propaganda agenda. Over 48 hours after it first began cross-platform promotion of a story that did not happen, the BBC continues to tell its audiences of “Sunday’s killing of Palestinians” and “killings near Gaza aid distribution site.”

This recent reporting by the BBC comes two weeks after they were forced to admit that their report that 14,000 babies in Gaza faced imminent death within a 48-hour window was “erroneous”. The report was based on a statement made by Tom Fletcher, the UN’s humanitarian chief, on BBC Radio 4’s Today program. Fletcher cited “strong teams on the ground” working in medical facilities and schools as sources for the claim. The claim spread extensively through UK and global media channels and was cited as factual by nine Members of Parliament during a House of Commons debate the previous day.

BBC News published a correction to Fletcher’s assertion, buried within an article discussing how Gaza aid was failing to reach the population. The BBC did not, however, retract the statement or note that it was incorrect. It noted that the claim was based on an Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) report that warned that 14,100 severe cases of acute malnutrition were expected to occur between April 2025 and March 2026 among children aged between six months and five years.

New York CNN —

The early morning killing of a top health insurance executive in midtown Manhattan Wednesday has unleashed a flurry of rage and frustration from social media users over denials of their medical claims, a public display of Americans’ pent-up anger at the nation’s complex health insurance industry.

In one stark example, a Facebook post by UnitedHealth Group expressing sadness about UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson’s death received 62,000 reactions – 57,000 of them laughing emojis. UnitedHealth Group is the parent company of UnitedHealthcare, the division that Thompson ran.

New York police have yet to determine the shooter’s identity and motive, but in an interview with NBC, Thompson’s widow, Paulette, told the network that “there had been some threats” against her husband, potentially related to “a lack of coverage… I don’t know the details.”

A source told CNN that there were concerning threats against UnitedHealth Group, although Thompson’s name was not mentioned.

A shell casing recovered from two of the bullets at the scene of the shooting had the words “depose” and “delay” written on them, according to law enforcement sources. Police are exploring whether the words indicate a motive since they are similar to the title of a book that’s critical of the broader insurance industry – “Delay Deny Defend.”

The majority of insured US adults had at least one issue, including denial of claims, with their health insurance in the span of a year, according to a survey released in June 2023 by KFF, a nonprofit health policy research group.

“Limitations on access to care due to claims denials have absolutely been a source of frustration for a long time,” said Kaye Pestaina, KFF’s director of Program on Patient and Consumer Protections.

A major industry group for health insurers criticized some of the social media reactions.

“The people in our industry are mission-driven professionals working to make coverage and care as affordable as possible and to help people navigate the complex medical system,” Mike Tuffin, CEO of the trade association, AHIP, said in a statement. “We condemn any suggestion that threats against our colleagues – or anyone else in our country – are ever acceptable.”

UnitedHealthcare said in a statement to CNN that its main priorities are to support Thompson’s family, ensure the safety of its employees and work with law enforcement to bring the gunman to justice.

“We, at UnitedHealth Group, will continue to be there for those who depend upon us for their health care,” the statement said. Other insurers did not return requests for comment.

Social media backlash

Almost immediately after news broke that Thompson had been killed, social media users began posting about their frustrations with UnitedHealthcare and other insurance companies.

UnitedHealthcare “denied my surgery two days before it was scheduled. I was in the hospital finance office in tears (when I was supposed to be at the hospital doing pre-op stuff),” one user wrote in an X post that received more than 70,000 likes. “My mother was flying out to see me. My surgeon spent a day and a half pleading my case to United when she probably should have been taking care of her other patients,” she added, before saying the surgery ended up going ahead but calling the process “torture.”

“My breast cancer surgery was denied” by a different insurance company, another X user posted. “Breast cancer. She asked me ‘well, is it an emergency?’ I don’t know- it’s (f***ing) cancer. What do you think? I had to appeal and luckily it went through. Evil to do that to people,” she said.

Their stories could not be independently verified by CNN.

TikTokker and anesthesiologist Brian Schmutzler said in a video that the shooting was “obviously tragic for him, tragic for his family, but this brought up some bigger issues.”

“From my perspective, we have a bigger issue with the insurance companies in general, who, essentially, it’s their job to make money, not to actually pay for health care,” he said.

In a blog post Thursday entitled “Why ‘we’ want insurance executives dead,” journalist Taylor Lorenz, who covers social media, analyzed the online responses: “No, that does not mean people should murder them. But if you’ve watched a loved one suffer and die from insurance denial, it’s normal to wish the people responsible would suffer the same fate.”

Lorenz’s post sparked a wave of backlash online.

Frightening denials

It’s not uncommon for Americans and their doctors to go through multiple hoops to get approval for the care doctors say their patients need, or to combat denials from carriers – even though 81% of insured adults in KFF’s 2023 survey rated their health insurance as “excellent” or “good.”

“This is care that people’s doctors recommend for them, and some of this care can be frightening,” Sara Collins, senior scholar at The Commonwealth Fund, a health policy foundation, told CNN, giving a cancer diagnosis as an example. “To get any kind of denial or delay while your insurer figures out whether or not they’re going to cover it is frightening for people. To have a decision all of a sudden be being made on the basis of financing is terribly upsetting for families.”

Nearly one in five insured adults experienced claim denials during a 12-month period, according to KFF’s 2023 survey. Those with job-based insurance or Affordable Care Act policies ran into this problem about twice as often as those covered by Medicare or Medicaid, whose denial rates were around one in 10.

Restricting access to health care through tools like claim denials and prior authorization, which requires that insurers approve the care in advance, are among the ways that health insurers try to weed out care that’s not medically necessary or not backed by scientific evidence – but it can also increase their profit margins. The practices, which increasingly rely on technology, including artificial intelligence, can infuriate patients and providers alike.

A class action lawsuit filed last year in US District Court in Minnesota argued that UnitedHealthcare uses AI “in place of real medical professionals to wrongfully deny elderly patients care,” according to the complaint. More than 90% of the denials are reversed through an internal appeal or proceedings before federal administrative law judges, the suit alleges.

UnitedHealthcare asked the court to dismiss the lawsuit, claiming the plaintiffs must first exhaust the administrative appeal process set by the Medicare Act, among other reasons.

The denial of claims can lead to major problems for patients, both in terms of care and their finances.

Last year, UnitedHealthcare settled a case brought by a severely ill college student in Pennsylvania who claimed the company denied coverage for drugs determined necessary by his doctors, leaving him with a medical bill of more than $800,000. The lawsuit, which was chronicled by ProPublica, uncovered the lengths to which the insurer goes to reject claims, including burying medical reports and relying on rubberstamped recommendations from doctors paid by the company.

Roughly a quarter of consumers whose claims insurance companies denied experienced significant delays in getting medical care or treatment, and about the same share were unable to receive care, the KFF survey found. About a quarter of those said their health declined.

Having to postpone care because of coverage denials can also affect patients’ mental health. Some 80% of adults said they or a family member were worried or anxious about delays in care, according to a 2023 Commonwealth Fund survey of adults ages 19 to 64.

Relatively few people try to fight when their insurer turns down their claim. Only 43% of adults in the Commonwealth Fund survey said they or their doctor challenged an insurer’s denial of claim. Some 45% of respondents said they weren’t sure they had the right to appeal the denial, while 40% said they weren’t sure whom to contact. Nearly a quarter said they didn’t have the time.

But challenging the denial can produce results. Half of those who appealed ultimately had their care approved, the Commonwealth Fund survey found.

Inappropriate denials in Medicare Advantage

Inappropriate denials of services and payments by Medicare Advantage insurers – including UnitedHealthcare, the largest player in the swiftly growing market – have come under fire in recent years, particularly from the Department of Health and Human Services, which regulates the program, and from some lawmakers.

The insurers, which are paid by the federal government to provide Medicare services to enrollees, have at times delayed or denied beneficiaries’ access to medical care – even though the requests met Medicare coverage rules, according to a 2022 report from HHS’ inspector general’s office. Annual federal audits have highlighted “widespread and persistent problems related to inappropriate denials of services and payment,” the office said.

A central concern is the potential incentive Medicare Advantage plans have to deny access to services and payments to providers in an attempt to increase profits, the office said. Insurers are given a set amount of money per patient regardless of the amount of care received.

UnitedHealthcare, in particular, has come under public scrutiny as it dramatically increased care denials for its Medicare Advantage enrollees.

The insurer more than doubled the rate of denials for care following hospital stays between 2020 and 2022 as it implemented machine-assisted technology to automate the process, according to a Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigation’s report released in October. That far surpassed its competitors, including Humana, whose care denials grew 54% during the same time period.

“Despite alarm and criticism in recent years about abuses and excesses, insurers have continued to deny care to vulnerable seniors—simply to make more money,” Connecticut Sen. Richard Blumenthal, who chairs the subcommittee, said in a statement in October.

CNN’s Jamie Gumbrecht, Majlie de Puy Kamp and Daniel Medina contributed to this report.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu appeared to double down on his claims that the United States has been withholding weapons deliveries for Israel’s war effort in Gaza, despite the Biden administration denying the claim.

On Sunday, Netanyahu told his Cabinet that there was a “dramatic drop” in U.S. weapons about four months ago, without specifying which weapons. He said only that “certain items arrived sporadically but the munitions at large remained behind.”

These comments come just days after he released a video in English last week after what he said were weeks of unsuccessful pleas with American officials to speed up deliveries.

“In light of what I have heard over the past day, I hope and believe that this matter will be solved soon,” he said Sunday, without elaborating.

A White House official told CBS News on Sunday that the administration has “made our position clear on this repeatedly and we are not going to keep responding to the Prime Minister’s political statements. We look forward to constructive consultations with the Defense Minister in Washington this week.”

Netanyahu’s video last week sparked an uproar among critics in Israel and was met with denial and confusion from White House officials.

White House national security spokesman John Kirby said last week that the U.S. was “perplexed” by Netanyahu’s claims.

“There’s no other country that’s done more, or will continue to do more than the United States to help Israel defend itself,” Kirby said.

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said, “We genuinely do not know what he’s talking about.”

A U.S. official told CBS News this week that Netanyahu’s remarks in the video are apparently based on Israel Defense Forces chief of staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi’s belief that the U.S. is slow-rolling Israel on smaller-ticket items like aircraft spare parts.

However, the official insisted there’s been no such delay, except for the shipment of 2,000-pound bombs, which were about to leave an East Coast weapons depot by ship when the delivery was halted in early May.

The U.S. has been reviewing one shipment of 2,000-pound and 500-pound bombs since May. As Israel was preparing for a major offensive in Rafah, the Biden administration paused the shipment because, as President Biden put it in an interview last month, “Civilians have been killed in Gaza as a consequence of those bombs.

“I’m not supplying the weapons that have been used historically to deal with Rafah,” Mr. Biden said. However, the administration said the U.S. would continue to support the Iron Dome, the system that protects Israel from rocket fire, and ensure Israel is able to “respond to attacks” originating in the Middle East. The Pentagon says the U.S. has continued to send weapons to Israel in the weeks since the pause of the shipment in May.

The war in Gaza, which was sparked by Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack on southern Israel, has tested the U.S.-Israel relationship like never before. While the U.S. has staunchly supported Israel’s aims of freeing hostages taken into Gaza and defeating Hamas, it has grown increasingly concerned over the rising Palestinian death toll and the humanitarian crisis created by the war.

Congressional Democrats on the fence about address

Netanyahu is scheduled to address U.S. lawmakers on July 24 and Democrats are wrestling with whether to attend. Many are torn between their long-standing support for Israel and their anguish about the way Israel has conducted operations in Gaza.

The last time Netanyahu addressed the U.S. Congress nine years ago, 60 Democrats skipped his speech, calling it a slap in the face to then-President Barack Obama as he negotiated a nuclear deal with Iran.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks March 3, 2015, before a joint meeting of Congress on Capitol Hill in Washington. J. Scott Applewhite / AP

While some Democrats are saying they will come out of respect for Israel, a larger and growing faction wants no part of it, creating an extraordinarily charged atmosphere at a gathering that normally amounts to a ceremonial, bipartisan show of support for an American ally.

The invitation from House Speaker Mike Johnson to Netanyahu came after consultation with the White House, a person familiar with the matter who was granted anonymity to discuss the sensitive subject told The Associated Press. As of now, no meeting between Biden and Netanyahu during his Washington visit has been scheduled, this person said.

Netanyahu said in a release that he was “very moved” by the invitation to address Congress and the chance “to present the truth about our just war against those who seek to destroy us to the representatives of the American people and the entire world.”

Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who opposed an invitation to the prime minister in 2015, said it was a mistake for congressional leadership to extend it again this time.

“I think it’s going to invite more of what we have seen in terms of discontent among our own,” she told CNN recently.

The Associated Press reported that interviews with more than a dozen Democrats revealed the breadth of discontent over the coming address, which many feel is a Republican ploy intended to divide their party.

Some Democrats say they will attend to express their support for Israel, not Netanyahu. Others said they are waiting to see whether Netanyahu will still be prime minister by the time he is supposed to speak to Congress.

Netanyahu’s visit is expected to draw significant protests and some members of Congress are planning an alternative event.

Open signs of discontent in Israel

Netanyahu’s government is a coalition that includes right-wing hard-liners who oppose any settlement with Hamas.

Benjamin “Benny” Gantz, a former military chief and centrist politician, withdrew from Netanyahu’s war Cabinet this month, citing frustration over the prime minister’s conduct of the war. On Monday, Netanyahu dissolved that body. In the meantime, a growing number of critics and protesters in Israel have backed a cease-fire proposal that would bring home hostages taken by Hamas.

People protest against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government and call for the release of hostages held in the Gaza Strip by the Hamas militant group, in Tel Aviv, Israel, Saturday, June 22, 2024. Leo Correa / AP

For Netanyahu, the growing daylight with the U.S. also poses political risks and opportunities. His critics see the public spats as the result of a leader prepared to wreck important alliances and tarnish Israel’s image in the world for political gain.

But the rift grants the long-serving leader a chance to show his base that he isn’t beholden to the U.S. and that he is putting Israel’s interests first.