At least 27 people killed, over 90 injured

GAZA, June 03 (AFP): Rescuers said the Israeli military killed at least 27 people near a US-backed aid centre in Gaza on Tuesday, with the army reporting it had fired on "suspects who advanced toward the troops".

The UN human rights chief condemned such attacks as a "breach of international law and a war crime", after a similar shooting in the same area of southern Gaza on Sunday killed and wounded scores of Palestinians seeking aid, according to the civil defence agency.

Tuesday's shooting in the southern city of Rafah came as the agency reported 19 killed in other Israeli attacks in the territory, and as the Israeli army announced three soldiers had been killed in northern Gaza.

"Twenty-seven people were killed and more than 90 injured in the massacre targeting civilians who were waiting for American aid in the Al-Alam area of Rafah," said civil defence spokesman Mahmud Bassal, who earlier told AFP the deaths occurred "when Israeli forces opened fire with tanks and drones".

The Al-Alam roundabout is about a kilometre (a little over half a mile) from an aid centre run by the US-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), a recently formed group that Israel has worked with to implement a new aid distribution mechanism in the territory.

The United Nations and major aid groups have refused to cooperate with the group, saying it contravenes humanitarian principles and appears designed to cater to Israeli military objectives.

The military said a crowd was moving towards the aid centre when troops saw them "deviating from the designated access routes".

"The troops carried out warning fire, and after the suspects failed to retreat, additional shots were directed near a few individual suspects who advanced toward the troops," it said, adding it was "aware of reports regarding casualties" and was looking into the details.

Rania al-Astal, 30, said she had gone to the area with her husband to try to get food.

"The shooting began intermittently around 5:00 am. Every time people approached Al-Alam roundabout, they were fired upon," she told AFP.

"But people didn't care and rushed forward all at once-that's when the army began firing heavily."

Mohammed al-Shaer, 44, said the crowd had just set off towards the aid centre when "suddenly, the Israeli army fired shots into the air, then began shooting directly at the people".

"A helicopter and quadcopters (drones) started firing at the crowd to prevent them from approaching the tank barrier. There were injuries and deaths," he told AFP.