Hamas says 18 dead in Gaza aid airdrop tragedy

PALESTINIAN TERRITORIES: Hamas called for an end to aid airdrops into Gaza Tuesday after it said 12 people drowned and six were killed in stampedes trying to reach the food packages.

“We call for an immediate end to airdrop operations… and we demand the immediate and rapid opening of land crossings to allow humanitarian aid to reach our Palestinian people,” said the militant group, which runs the besieged territory.

The deaths happened in the starving north of the besieged territory on Monday, with people rushing to collect packages dropped from planes along Gaza’s Mediterranean coast.

The health ministry in Gaza said that at least 32,414 people have been killed in the territory during more than five months of war between Israel and Palestinian militants.

The toll includes at least 81 deaths over the past 24 hours, a ministry statement said, adding that 74,787 people have been wounded in the Gaza Strip since the war began when Hamas militants attacked Israel on October 7.