Western leaders condemn the “bloodbath” in Gaza City

“Deep indignation at the images coming from Gaza where Israeli soldiers opened fire on civilians,” Macron wrote in a statement on Channel X.

The French President continued: “I express my strong condemnation of these shootings and call for truth, justice and respect for international law.”

He called for an immediate ceasefire to allow humanitarian aid to arrive.

'Serious breach'

Chaos erupted as an emergency aid convoy, coordinated by the Israeli army, arrived in Gaza City early Thursday morning. More than 100 people have been confirmed dead and more than 750 others injured, according to Gaza health authorities run by Hamas.

“These deaths are completely unacceptable,” EU foreign affairs chief Josep Borrell said in a statement on Channel X.

“Depriving people of food aid constitutes a serious violation of international humanitarian law.”

Unclear circumstances

Thousands of hungry people rushed towards the 38 trucks. Accounts differ about what happened next.

According to Palestinian testimonies, Israeli soldiers opened fire on the crowd.

The Israeli army admits that shots were fired, but claims, according to Israeli media, that many victims were injured in the ensuing chaos and that the army is responsible for less than a dozen of the deaths.

Extraordinary meeting

The aid convoy came from private parties in Egypt and was coordinated by Israel, according to the Israeli army.

The UN Security Council was summoned to an emergency meeting on Thursday evening over the incident, which was also condemned by UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.

Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani and Spanish Foreign Minister Dito José Manuel Albarez also called for a ceasefire after the incident to enable aid shipments.