Gaza’s interior ministry operation kills 20 in crackdown on aid looters

Gaza’s interior ministry reported on Monday that at least 20 people were killed in an operation targeting “gangs” accused of looting United Nations aid trucks in the famine-stricken territory, where an Israeli blockade has severely restricted most goods and services.

The ministry stated, “More than 20 members of gangs involved in stealing aid trucks were killed in a security operation carried out by security forces in cooperation with tribal committees.”

It added, “Today’s security operation will not be the last. The phenomenon of truck thefts… has severely impacted society and led to signs of famine in southern Gaza.”

The ministry described the operation as “the beginning of a broad security campaign that has been long planned and will expand to include everyone involved in the theft of aid trucks.”

UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric confirmed in a press briefing that only 11 of the 109 trucks in the convoy reached their destination.