2 Israeli Shootings in Gaza Highlights Deeper Underlying Issue of Governance

51 Palestinians were killed and over 200 wounded at a hub run by the World Food Programme near the city of Khan Younis between July 17th and July 20th, when Israel and UN controlled food distribution camps spiraled out of control.

According to the New York Times, Israeli soldiers opened fire on Saturday, July 19th, on civilians who were pushing towards distribution sites run by Israeli-backed private contractors. On Sunday, Israeli soldiers opened fire again on civilians rushing to seize aid from food trucks sent by the United Nations toward areas controlled by Hamas. Those who favor the Israeli-backed food distribution centers condemn the UN-led food distribution centers, and those who favor the UN-led system condemn the Israelian system.

Later, according to The New York Times, Israel proposed to move food distribution sites in areas beyond Hamas’s control in order to make it harder for both fighters from the militant group and civilian looters to steal supplies. This was met with criticism, as critics argue this would make it even harder for civilians to get food if they have to deliberately cross Israeli military lines.

Indeed, the situation is far from simple. According to The Economist, the Israeli Defense Forces (or IDF) denies claims by Palestinian health authorities and UN agencies that some 700 Gazans have been killed around the distribution centers, saying that these numbers were “intentionally inflated”. International aid organizations, like the UN, deny their supplies were controlled by Hamas and have refused to co-operate with the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, or GHF. The UN claims that the GHF severely violated basic humanitarian principles, according to The Economist.

However, this shooting reflected deeper concerns. For one, Israeli used fire to contain unrest instead of nonlethal crowd control. Secondly, civilians are so starved that they are willing to embrace firearms in order to get food, revealing poor regulation on food distribution; And lastly, there isn’t a functional government in Gaza to provide sufficient law enforcement. Shira Efron, an expert on aid systems in Gaza at Israel Policy Forum, said to The New York Times, “the bigger issue is the lawlessness and the breakdown of governance. After 22 months of war , it’s anarchy in Gaza. And without addressing the core issue of what should happen next in Gaza, there won’t be a solution.”

The longstanding conflict between Israel and Palestine is not nearing an end anytime soon, but temporary ceasefires are being negotiated between Israel and Hamas. Though the outcome of that negotiation is uncertain, the two shooting incidents did reveal deeper problems regarding governance in Gaza, paving a path for international aid organizations to target the problem.

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Sources:

https://www.nytimes.com/2025/07/21/world/middleeast/shootings-aid-gaza-analysis.html

https://www.economist.com/middle-east-and-africa/2025/07/17/a-first-hand-look-at-gazas-controversial-food-distribution-sites

https://www.economist.com/middle-east-and-africa/2025/06/20/gaza-is-in-a-bloody-limbo-as-the-battle-over-iran-rages