AU chief condemns killing of Palestinians seeking aid in Gaza

Chairperson of the African Union (AU) Commission Moussa Faki Mahamat has "strongly condemned" the mass killing of Palestinians queuing for humanitarian aid in Gaza, reported Xinhua.

The chairperson "strongly condemns an attack by Israeli forces that killed and wounded more than 100 Palestinians seeking life-saving humanitarian aid in occupied Northern Gaza on Thursday," said an AU statement issued late Friday.

Faki called for an international investigation into the incident to bring the perpetrators to account.

Palestinian officials said Israeli forces on Thursday opened fire on a crowd of Palestinians waiting for aid on a coastal road west of Gaza City, killing 115 people and wounding over 700 others.

An Israeli military spokesman said the troops fired "in self-defense" after Gazans attacked and looted aid trucks that entered the Gaza Strip early in the morning.

The chairperson of the pan-African bloc reiterated the call of the AU for an "immediate and unconditional ceasefire in occupied Palestine to stop the ongoing and increasing State of Israel's assault against the lives and means of survival of the Palestinian people."

He called on the international community to assume their responsibilities to urgently impose peace and guarantee the rights of the Palestinian people.