Israeli forces shot dead four Palestinian aid-seekers traveling Sunday through a military zone south of Gaza City that is regularly used to reach a food distribution point, a hospital and witnesses said.

Gaza health officials said the strikes targeted tents sheltering displaced people in Khan Younis, which became home to hundreds of thousands who had fled from elsewhere in Gaza.

Israel has called the United Nations' declaration of famine in parts of Gaza an "outright lie," but multiple U.N. bodies, more than 100 humanitarian groups, and several of Israel's own allies have warned for months that the war and Israel's restrictions of food into Gaza are causing starvation among civilians.

It’s the first time the IPC has confirmed a famine in the Middle East, where Israel has been in a brutal war with Hamas since the militant group’s Oct. 7, 2023 attack. People in Gaza rely almost entirely on outside aid to survive because Israel’s military offensive has wiped out most capacity to produce food inside the territory.

As the UN is declaring famine in Gaza City, Gazans tell The Media Line that Hamas is responsible for the lack of food. The UN is preparing a declaration of famine in Gaza City, holding Israel responsible for the humanitarian crisis under its revised criteria,