Desperation and hunger continue to grip southern Gaza as large crowds of Palestinians were seen risking their lives to access food and basic supplies at an aid distribution centre in Rafah, reportedly established with the backing of the United States and Israel.
Footage from the area shows hundreds of civilians, including women and children, navigating chaotic and unsafe conditions in a bid to secure desperately needed humanitarian assistance. Many have been displaced multiple times amid ongoing Israeli military operations in the region.
“We’re starving. There’s no clean water, no electricity, no medicine,” said a displaced resident in Rafah. “We know going there is dangerous, but we don’t have a choice.”
The distribution centre is part of an initiative supported by the U.S. and Israeli governments, intended to facilitate aid delivery into Gaza. However, humanitarian groups on the ground say the process remains deeply flawed, with insufficient aid reaching those most in need, and no guarantees of safety for civilians attempting to collect it.
The Israeli military has designated parts of Rafah as humanitarian zones, but continued airstrikes and military activity nearby have raised concerns about the security of aid access. U.N. officials have repeatedly warned that without a sustained ceasefire and protected humanitarian corridors, the crisis will only worsen.
According to the United Nations, more than 1.9 million Gazans have been displaced since the conflict escalated, with many now living in overcrowded shelters or makeshift camps with limited access to food, clean water, and medical care.
International aid agencies are calling for urgent reforms to the distribution system, including better coordination, increased aid flow, and guarantees of civilian safety.
“The current setup is not enough,” said one aid worker. “People shouldn’t have to choose between starvation and risking their lives for a bag of flour.”
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