US contractors say colleagues fired live ammunition at Palestinians seeking food

The controversy surrounding the United States and Israeli-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation shows no signs of fading. 

US contractors guarding aid distribution sites in Gaza told the Associated Press that their colleagues were using live ammunition and stun grenades against Palestinians waiting for food. 

The American organisation GHF was established in February. Israel now wants to use it to replace the United Nations aid distribution system. 

"Two US contractors, who spoke to us on the condition of anonymity because they were revealing their employers' internal operations, said they were coming out because they were disturbed by what they saw as dangerous and irresponsible practices", said Julia Frankel, an Associated Press reporter in Jerusalem.

"They say the security staff on site were often unqualified, unvetted and had an open license to do whatever they wished. "

US contractors working on GHF sites also told the AP that their colleagues used pepper spray towards the Palestinians and documented anyone they thought looked suspicious. They shared such information with the Israeli military.

A spokesperson for Safe Reach Solutions, the logistics company subcontracted by the GHF, told the AP that there have been no serious injuries at any of their sites to date.

Israel blocked all food, water and medicine from entering Gaza for two and a half months, before allowing the GHF to operate in late May. 

Distributions handled by the US organisation have been marred by violence and chaos. The UN said Israeli troops had killed over 400 Palestinians around new private aid hubs. 

"The military has repeatedly said it's fired only warning shots, denies deliberately firing towards civilians and says it's looking into reports of civilian harm", Frankel said.

Human rights group Amnesty International issued a report on Tuesday, accusing Israel of militarising aid and of using starvation to commit a genocide in the Gaza Strip. 

Israel has dismissed Amnesty’s allegations as Hamas propaganda. 

Gaza’s more than 2 million Palestinians are living through a catastrophic humanitarian crisis. Gaza is "the hungriest place on Earth", the UN humanitarian affairs coordination spokesperson Jens Laerke said on 30 May.