Israeli military kills 16 in Gaza

GAZA, June 15 (AFP): Gaza's civil defence agency said 16 people were killed in Israeli military operations in the Palestinian territory on Sunday, most of them while waiting for aid.
The first responders agency's teams transported the bodies of 16 people killed by Israeli fire in various part of the Palestinian territory, spokesman Mahmud Bassal told AFP.
At least three people were killed and many injured when Israeli forces "targeted a gathering of hundreds of citizens near the aid distribution point" in central Gaza Sunday morning, Bassal said.
In the coastal territory's north, Bassal said civil defence teams transported seven people killed on their way to get aid distributed from trucks in the area northwest of Gaza City.
In south Gaza, two people were killed and 50 were injured "when (Israeli) forces opened fire on citizens near an aid distribution point," Bassal said.
Contacted by AFP, the army said it was "not aware of gunshots near Netzarim or Rafah", and that it was looking into the events in northern Gaza.
Thousands join
pro-Palestinian
protests in France
Thousands of demonstrators protested across France on Saturday in support of Palestinians and calling for peace in Gaza.
French trade unions, left-wing parties and pro-Palestinian activist groups called for a global weekend of protests against Israel's offensive in the territory.
They issued their rallying call before Israel on Friday launched a massive wave of strikes on Iran, raising fears of a prolonged conflict that experts say could engulf the region.
Israeli soldier killed
in southern Gaza
The Israeli army said Sunday that a soldier had been killed in battle in Gaza one day earlier, as its war with Palestinian militant group Hamas enters its 20th month.
"Noam Shemesh aged 21 from Jerusalem... fell during combat in the southern Gaza Strip," the army said in a statement. About 430 soldiers have been killed since Israel's ground operation in Gaza began on October 27, 2023.