Israel fire kills dozens more aid seekers in Gaza, medics say, as hunger worsens
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Israel fire kills dozens more aid seekers in Gaza, medics say, as hunger worsens
At least 67 people were killed by Israeli fire while they waited for U.N. aid trucks in northern Gaza on Sunday, the territory’s health ministry said. Israel issued new evacuation orders for areas packed with displaced Gazans, some of whom began to leave their homes. The Israeli military said its troops had fired warning shots towards a crowd of thousands on Sunday to remove what it said was “an immediate threat” Palestinian health officials said hundreds of people could soon die as hospitals were inundated with patients suffering from dizziness and exhaustion due to the scarcity of food and a collapse in aid deliveries. At least 71 children had died of malnutrition during the war, and 60,000 others were suffering from symptoms of malnutrition, the Gaza health ministry says. The United Nations also said on Sunday that civilians were starving and needed an urgent influx of aid, saying 18 people have died of hunger in the past 24 hours. The UN refugee agency demanded Israel to allow more aid trucks into Gaza, saying it had enough food for the entire population for three months.
Item 1 of 3 Palestinians gather as they carry aid supplies that entered Gaza through Israel, amid a hunger crisis, in Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip July 20, 2025. REUTERS/Dawoud Abu Alkas
Summary Medics say dozens killed and wounded waiting for aid trucks
Israeli military says it will expand operations in Gaza
Hostage families fear their relatives will be put at risk
Officials warn of growing hunger in Gaza, demand more aid
CAIRO, July 20 (Reuters) – At least 67 people were killed by Israeli fire while they waited for U.N. aid trucks in northern Gaza on Sunday, the territory’s health ministry said, as Israel issued new evacuation orders for areas packed with displaced Gazans, some of whom began to leave.
The ministry said dozens of people were also wounded in the incident in northern Gaza, in one of the highest reported tolls among repeated recent cases in which aid seekers have been killed, including 36 on Saturday . Six other people were killed near another aid site in the south, it said.
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The Israeli military said its troops had fired warning shots towards a crowd of thousands in northern Gaza on Sunday to remove what it said was “an immediate threat”.
It said initial findings suggested reported casualty figures were inflated, and it “certainly does not intentionally target humanitarian aid trucks”.
It did not immediately comment on the incident in the south.
In total, health authorities said 88 people had been killed by Israeli gunfire and airstrikes across Gaza on Sunday.
After Israel’s military dropped leaflets urging people to evacuate from neighbourhoods in central Gaza’s Deir al-Balah, residents said Israeli planes struck three houses in the area.
Dozens of families began leaving their homes, carrying some of their belongings. Hundreds of thousands of displaced Gazans have been sheltering in the Deir al-Balah area.
Israel’s military said it had not entered the districts subject to the evacuation order during the current conflict and that it was continuing “to operate with great force to destroy the enemy’s capabilities and terrorist infrastructure in the area”.
Israeli sources have said the reason the army has so far stayed out is because they suspect Hamas might be holding hostages there. At least 20 of the remaining 50 hostages in captivity in Gaza are believed to still be alive.
Hostage families demanded an explanation from the army.
“Can anyone (promise) to us that this decision will not come at the cost of losing our loved ones?” the families said in a statement.
STARVATION
Much of Gaza has been reduced to a wasteland during more than 21 months of war and there are fears of accelerating starvation.
Palestinian health officials said hundreds of people could soon die as hospitals were inundated with patients suffering from dizziness and exhaustion due to the scarcity of food and a collapse in aid deliveries.
“We warn that hundreds of people whose bodies have wasted away are at risk of imminent death due to hunger,” the health ministry, which is controlled by Hamas, said.
The United Nations also said on Sunday that civilians were starving and needed an urgent influx of aid.
Residents said it was becoming impossible to find essential food such as flour. The Gaza health ministry said at least 71 children had died of malnutrition during the war, and 60,000 others were suffering from symptoms of malnutrition.
Later on Sunday, it said 18 people have died of hunger in the past 24 hours.
Food prices have increased well beyond what most of the population of more than two million can afford.
Several people who spoke to Reuters via chat apps said they either had one meal or no meal in the past 24 hours.
“As a father, I wake up in the early morning to look for food, for even a loaf of bread for my five children, but all in vain,” said Ziad, a nurse.
“People who didn’t die of bombs will die of hunger. We want an end to this war now, a truce, even for two months,” he told Reuters.
Others said they felt dizzy walking in the streets and that many fainted as they walked. Fathers leave tents to avoid questions by their children about what to eat.
UNRWA, the U.N. refugee agency dedicated to Palestinians, demanded Israel allow more aid trucks into Gaza, saying it had enough food for the entire population for over three months which was not allowed in.
Israel’s military said that it “views the transfer of humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip as a matter of utmost importance, and works to enable and facilitate its entry in coordination with the international community”.
TRUCE TALKS
Some Palestinians suggested the move on Deir al-Balah might be an attempt to put pressure on Hamas to make more concessions in long-running ceasefire negotiations.
Israel and Hamas are engaged in indirect talks in Doha aimed at reaching a 60-day truce and hostage deal, although there has been no sign of breakthrough.
The war began when Hamas-led militants stormed into Israel on October 7, 2023, killing 1,200 people and taking 251 hostages back to Gaza.
The Israeli military campaign against Hamas in Gaza has since killed more than 58,000 Palestinians according to health officials, displaced almost the entire population and plunged the enclave into a humanitarian crisis.
Reporting by Nidal al-Mughrabi; Editing by Crispian Balmer and Aidan Lewis
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Vietnam hunts four missing after sudden thunderstorm capsized tourist boat
Dozens of rescuers were scrambling in Vietnam on Sunday to trace four missing people after retrieving the bodies of dozens killed when a thunderstorm capsized a boat. The government revised down the death toll to 35 from an initial 38 on Saturday, while cutting an estimate of those aboard to 49 from 53. The accident was one of the worst in recent years in the UNESCO-protected archipelago of thousands of limestone islands about 200 km (125 miles) northeast of Hanoi. Strong winds, heavy rain and lightning were reported around the time of the event, at 2 p.m. (2:30 a.m.) on Saturday in Halong Bay.
Four still missing after boating accident in Halong Bay
Storm caused damage in Hanoi, temporarily disrupted air travel
HALONG BAY/HANOI, Vietnam, July 20 (Reuters) – Dozens of rescuers were scrambling in Vietnam on Sunday to trace four missing people after retrieving the bodies of dozens killed when a thunderstorm capsized a boat in the top tourist destination of Halong Bay, authorities said.
Despite a calm sea, rescuers, from police and border guards to divers and navy personnel, were battling limited visibility hours before the expected landfall in northern Vietnam of Typhoon Wipha, which is now approaching Hong Kong
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The government said rescuers had managed to retrieve the sunken boat and revised down the death toll to 35 from an initial 38 on Saturday, while cutting an estimate of those aboard to 49 from 53, though officials fear the toll could still rise.
All the tourists aboard were Vietnamese, including several children, the official Vietnam News Agency said.
“My brother can swim, but I was told everything happened too fast,” Tran Trung Tu, 39, whose sibling was 32, told Reuters at a funeral parlour on Sunday.
Item 1 of 3 A tourist boat (in white) that capsized in an accident which killed dozens and left several people still missing, is towed back to the port in Halong Bay, Quang Ninh province, Vietnam, July 20, 2025. REUTERS/Thinh Nguyen [1/3] A tourist boat (in white) that capsized in an accident which killed dozens and left several people still missing, is towed back to the port in Halong Bay, Quang Ninh province, Vietnam, July 20, 2025. REUTERS/Thinh Nguyen Purchase Licensing Rights , opens new tab
The accident was one of the worst in recent years in the UNESCO-protected archipelago of thousands of limestone islands about 200 km (125 miles) northeast of Hanoi, which draws tens of thousands of visitors each year.
The sudden thunderstorm turned the sky dark in a matter of minutes, felling trees in the capital of Hanoi, where officials at the Noi Bai international airport said nine flights were diverted and three departures temporarily halted.
“It is the first time I have experienced an accident with so many casualties here,” said insurance agent Do Thi Thuy.
A tour boat sank in Halong Bay i n 2011 , killing 12, with some foreign tourists among them.
The government said the accident was caused by a “sudden” storm. Strong winds, heavy rain and lightning were reported around the time of the event, at 2 p.m. on Saturday.
“I was told life vests were available, but it was too sudden,” said Do Van Hai, 42, a Halong resident. “Hopefully, the missing ones will be found soon.”
Reporting by Thinh Nguyen in Halong and Phuong Nguyen in Hanoi; Writing by Francesco Guarascio; Editing by Edmund Klamann and Clarence Fernandez
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Trump says he will help Afghans stuck in the UAE
U.S. President Donald Trump said on Sunday he would help Afghans detained in the United Arab Emirates. Trump suspended refugee resettlement after he took office in January. In April, the Trump administration terminated temporary deportation protections for thousands of Afghans. The UAE agreed in 2021 to temporarily house several thousand Afghans evacuated from Kabul as the Taliban ousted the U.S.-backed government during the final stages of the U-S.-led withdrawal. Nearly 2 million Afghans were returned from Iran and Pakistan in the past seven months, U.N. said last week.
WASHINGTON, July 20 (Reuters) – President Donald Trump said on Sunday he would help Afghans detained in the United Arab Emirates for years after fleeing their country when its Taliban leaders extended control over it.
Trump, a Republican who promised a far-reaching immigration crackdown, suspended refugee resettlement after he took office in January. In April, the Trump administration terminated temporary deportation protections for thousands of Afghans in the U.S.
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“I will try to save them, starting right now,” Trump said in a post on Truth Social that linked to an article on the Afghans held in limbo there.
Trump cited news website “Just the News” as saying that UAE officials were preparing to hand over some Afghan refugees to the Taliban. Reuters has not confirmed the report.
The State Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The UAE, a close security partner of the United States, agreed in 2021 to temporarily house several thousand Afghans evacuated from Kabul as the Taliban ousted the U.S.-backed government during the final stages of the U.S.-led withdrawal.
Nearly 200,000 Afghans have been brought to the U.S. by former President Joe Biden’s administration since the chaotic U.S. troop withdrawal from Kabul.
Canada agreed in 2022 to resettle about 1,000 of the Afghans still held in the UAE after a U.S. request. It is unclear how many remain in the Gulf country.
Some countries have forced Afghan refugees to return to Afghanistan. Nearly 2 million Afghans were returned from Iran and Pakistan in the past seven months, the United Nations said last week.
Germany on Friday deported 81 Afghan men to Afghanistan amid a tightening of refugee admissions. Some other European countries are pushing to tighten asylum rules in the bloc.
In the United States, Democrats have urged Trump to restore temporary protected status for Afghans, saying women and children could face particular harm under the Taliban-led government in place since 2021.
Refugees include family members of Afghan-American U.S. military personnel, children cleared to reunite with their parents, relatives of Afghans already admitted and tens of thousands of Afghans who worked for the U.S. government during the 20-year war.
Reporting by Doina Chiacu; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama
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Gaza civil defence says Israeli fire kills 57 aid seekers
Israeli forces opened fire on a crowd of Palestinians waiting to collect humanitarian aid in the territory’s north on July 20, killing 57 people and wounding dozens more. The Israeli military ordered Palestinians to leave Deir el-Balah, in the centre of the Strip, before launching its first operations against Hamas militants in the area. Pope Leo XIV, meanwhile, called for peace in Gaza days after Israeli tank fire hit the territory’s only Catholic church, killing three. The war was sparked by Hamas’s attack on Israel on Oct 7, 2023 , leading to the deaths of 1,219 people, most of them civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official figures. The army has maintained that it works to avoid harm to civilians, saying this month that it issued new instructions to its troops on the ground “following lessons learned” from a spate of similar incidents. The authorities in Gaza blame Israeli fire as crowds facing chronic shortages of food and other essentials gather in huge numbers near aid centres.
Injured victims of Israeli fire being taken to the Red Cross field hospital in the southern Gaza Strip on July 20.
GAZA CITY – Gaza’s civil defence agency said Israeli forces opened fire on a crowd of Palestinians waiting to collect humanitarian aid in the territory’s north on July 20, killing 57 people and wounding dozens more.
Further to the south, the Israeli military ordered Palestinians to leave Deir el-Balah, in the centre of the Strip, before launching its first operations against Hamas militants in the area.
Pope Leo XIV, meanwhile, called for peace in Gaza days after Israeli tank fire hit the territory’s only Catholic church, killing three.
Deaths of civilians seeking aid have become a regular occurrence, with the authorities in Gaza blaming Israeli fire as crowds facing chronic shortages of food and other essentials gather in huge numbers near aid centres.
Qasem Abu Khater, 36, told AFP he had rushed to the Al-Sudaniya area of Gaza City in the hope of getting a bag of flour, joining a “desperate” crowd of thousands.
Flour packs for sale at a makeshift market in the Mawasi area of Rafah, in the southern Gaza Strip on July 20. PHOTO: AFP
“There was deadly overcrowding and pushing – women, men and children,” said Mr Khater, who was displaced from Jabalia, north of the city.
“It felt like we were no longer alive, like we had no souls left. The tanks were firing shells randomly at us and Israeli sniper soldiers were shooting as if they were hunting animals in a forest,” he added.
“Dozens of people were martyred right before my eyes and no one could save anyone.”
Civil defence agency spokesman Mahmud Bassal told AFP that “Israeli forces opened fire on civilians waiting for aid”, and that “dozens” were wounded.
Media restrictions in Gaza and difficulties accessing many areas mean AFP is unable to independently verify tolls and details provided by the agency and other parties.
Asked for comment, the military said it was looking into the latest reports of deaths.
The army has maintained that it works to avoid harm to civilians, saying this month that it issued new instructions to its troops on the ground “following lessons learned” from a spate of similar incidents.
Papal call
The war was sparked by Hamas’s attack on Israel on Oct 7, 2023 , leading to the deaths of 1,219 people, most of them civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official figures.
Israel’s retaliatory campaign has killed 58,895 Palestinians, mostly civilians, according to the health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on July 17 expressed his regret to Pope Leo XIV after what he described as a “stray” munition killed three people sheltering at the Holy Family Church in Gaza City.
At the end of the pope’s Angelus prayer on July 20, the leader of the world’s Catholics said the strike was part of the “ongoing military attacks against the civilian population and places of worship in Gaza”.
“I appeal to the international community to observe humanitarian law and respect the obligation to protect civilians, as well as the prohibition of collective punishment, the indiscriminate use of force, and the forced displacement of populations,” he added.
The Catholic Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, Pierbattista Pizzaballa, held mass at the Gaza church on July 20 after travelling to the territory on July 18.
The Catholic Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, Pierbattista Pizzaballa, held mass at the Holy Family Church in Gaza City on July 20. PHOTO: AFP
‘Expanding’ operations
Most of Gaza’s population of more than two million people have been displaced at least once during the war and there have been repeated evacuation calls across large parts of the coastal territory.
On July 20, the Israeli military told residents and displaced Palestinians sheltering in the Deir el-Balah area to move south immediately.
Israel was “expanding its activities” against Hamas around Deir el-Balah, “where it has not operated before”, the military’s Arabic-language spokesman Avichay Adraee said on X.
The announcement prompted concern from families of hostages held since Oct 7, 2023 that the Israeli offensive could harm their loved ones.
They called in a statement for Israeli authorities to “urgently explain to Israeli citizens and families what the fighting plan is and how exactly it protects the abductees who are still in Gaza”.
Delegations from Israel and militant group Hamas have spent the last two weeks in indirect talks on a proposed 60-day ceasefire in Gaza and the release of 10 living hostages.
Of the 251 hostages taken during Hamas’s 2023 attack, 49 are still being held in Gaza, including 27 the Israeli military says are dead.
Japan PM laments ‘harsh’ election result as upper house control slips
Ruling coalition likely to lose upper house, exit polls show. Opposition parties pledge tax cuts, more spending.Japan faces August 1 deadline on US tariffs.Investors worry about Japan’s fiscal health, debt pile.Far-right anti-immigration party set for gains in Japan’s upper house election.. Japan faces a deadline of August 1 to strike a trade deal with the U.S. or face punishing tariffs in its largest export market.. The world’s oldest society saw a record of 3.8 million foreign-born residents hit last year, a fraction of the population in the United States and a smaller fraction in the UK. The number of Japanese citizens living abroad is still just 3% of the total population of the world’s largest economy, according to the World Bank. The U.N. says the number of foreigners living in Japan has fallen to a record low of 2.7 million in the past year. The figure is down from 2.9 million in 2000. The World Bank says the decline is due to the fact that more people now live in Japan than in previous decades.
Opposition parties pledge tax cuts, more spending
Japan faces August 1 deadline on US tariffs
Investors worry about Japan’s fiscal health, debt
Far-right anti-immigration party set for gains
TOKYO, July 20 (Reuters) – Japan’s shaky ruling coalition is likely to lose control of the upper house, exit polls showed after Sunday’s election, potentially heralding political turmoil as a tariff deadline with the United States looms.
While the ballot does not directly determine whether Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba’s minority government falls, it heaps pressure on the embattled leader who also lost control of the more powerful lower house in October.
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Ishiba’s Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and coalition partner Komeito need 50 seats to secure the 248-seat upper chamber in an election where half the seats were up for grabs. They are forecast to hold 32 to 51 seats, the exit poll by public broadcaster NHK showed.
Other broadcasters forecast the ruling coalition would return 41-43 seats. If the coalition drops below 46 seats, it would mark its worst result since it was formed in 1999.
That comes on top of its worst showing in 15 years in October’s lower house election, a vote which has left Ishiba’s administration vulnerable to no-confidence motions and calls from within his own party for leadership change.
Speaking two hours after polls closed to public broadcaster NHK, Ishiba said he “solemnly” accepted the “harsh result”.
Asked whether he intended to stay on as prime minister and party leader, he said “that’s right”.
“We are engaged in extremely critical tariff negotiations with the United States…we must never ruin these negotiations. It is only natural to devote our complete dedication and energy to realizing our national interests,” he later told TV Tokyo.
Japan, the world’s fourth largest economy, faces a deadline of August 1 to strike a trade deal with the United States or face punishing tariffs in its largest export market.
The main opposition Constitutional Democratic Party is projected to win 18 to 30 seats, from 22 held previously, NHK’s exit poll showed.
The far-right Sanseito party, birthed on YouTube a few years ago, has been the surprise package with its ‘Japanese First’ campaign and warnings about a “silent invasion” of foreigners. It is forecast to win 10-15 seats in the chamber, up from one held previously, yet it holds only three seats in the lower house.
Item 1 of 10 Election officials count votes at a ballot counting centre for Japan’s upper house election in Tokyo, Japan, July 20, 2025. REUTERS/Manami Yamada [1/10] Election officials count votes at a ballot counting centre for Japan’s upper house election in Tokyo, Japan, July 20, 2025. REUTERS/Manami Yamada Purchase Licensing Rights , opens new tab
‘HAMMERED HOME’
Opposition parties advocating for tax cuts and welfare spending have struck a chord with voters, the exit polls showed, as rising consumer prices – particularly a jump in the cost of rice – have sowed frustration at the government’s response.
“The LDP was largely playing defence in this election, being on the wrong side of a key voter issue,” said David Boling, a director at consulting firm Eurasia Group.
“Polls show that most households want a cut to the consumption tax to address inflation, something that the LDP opposes. Opposition parties seized on it and hammered that message home.”
The LDP has been urging for fiscal restraint, with one eye on a very jittery government bond market, as investors worry about Japan’s ability to refinance the world’s largest debt pile.
Sanseito, which first emerged during the COVID-19 pandemic spreading conspiracy theories about vaccinations and a cabal of global elites, has dragged once-fringe political rhetoric into the mainstream and gained wider support among frustrated voters.
It remains to be seen whether the party can follow the path of other far-right parties with which it has drawn comparisons, such as Germany’s AFD and Reform UK.
“I am attending graduate school but there are no Japanese around me. All of them are foreigners,” said Yu Nagai, a 25-year-old student who voted for Sanseito earlier on Sunday.
“When I look at the way compensation and money are spent on foreigners, I think that Japanese people are a bit disrespected,” Nagai said after casting his ballot at a polling station in Tokyo’s Shinjuku ward.
Japan, the world’s oldest society, saw foreign-born residents hit a record of about 3.8 million last year.
That is still just 3% of the total population, a much smaller fraction than in the United States and Europe, but comes amid a tourism boom that has made foreigners far more visible across the country.
Reporting by Tim Kelly, Mariko Katsumura and Rikako Maruyama; Writing by John Geddie; Editing by Clarence Fernandez, Edmund Klamann, Toby Chopra, Susan Fenton and Chizu Nomiyama
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