At least 59 Palestinians were killed and over 220 injured on Tuesday after Israeli tanks fired shells at a crowd gathered near aid trucks in Khan Younis, southern Gaza, according to local medics.

The strike marks one of the deadliest incidents in recent weeks as thousands of desperate civilians continue to search for food amid a worsening humanitarian crisis.

Eyewitnesses said the crowd had gathered along a main road where aid trucks were expected to pass. “They told us to move forward, then the tank shells hit,” said Alaa, a survivor interviewed at the overwhelmed Nasser Hospital.

“People are being torn apart for trying to get flour to feed their children.”

Videos shared online showed dozens of bodies sprawled across the road. The wounded arrived at the hospital in rickshaws, donkey carts, and civilian vehicles, with many lying untreated due to lack of space.

The Israeli military confirmed firing in the area, saying a crowd had approached a stuck aid truck near IDF forces. The incident is under investigation, and the military said it “regrets any harm to uninvolved individuals” while stressing its efforts to minimize civilian casualties.

Tuesday’s overall death toll in Gaza reached at least 73, including 14 killed in other Israeli strikes.

According to Gaza’s health ministry, nearly 400 Palestinians have been killed and more than 3,000 wounded while trying to access aid since Israel partially lifted its blockade in late May.

Much of the current aid is distributed through the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), a U.S.- and Israeli-backed initiative operating under military protection—an arrangement the UN has criticized as unsafe and biased.

The ongoing war, sparked by the October 2023 Hamas attack that killed 1,200 people in Israel, has resulted in nearly 55,000 Palestinian deaths and left most of Gaza’s 2.3 million residents displaced and hungry.

The crisis deepens as Gaza residents now watch anxiously amid rising tensions between Israel and Iran, a long-time supporter of Hamas.

The Israeli army claimed on Tuesday, June 17, that it had targeted and killed Ali Shadmani, the newly appointed commander of Iran’s Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters, in a strike on Tehran.

According to the Israeli military, Shadmani was one of the closest figures to Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.

He had been appointed just four days earlier by Khamenei as the successor to Gholam Ali Rashid.

Meanwhile, Kioumars Heydari, Commander of Iran’s Army Ground Forces, stated Tuesday that a heavy wave of drone attacks on Israel has begun, utilizing “new and advanced weaponry,” and warned that the strikes will intensify in the coming hours.

Meanwhile, Israeli media, citing Israel’s Home Front Command, reported that alarm sirens were activated in the Golan Heights following the suspected infiltration of a drone.

Israel and Iran attacked each other for a fifth straight day on Tuesday, and U.S. President Donald Trump urged Iranians to evacuate Tehran, citing what he said was the country’s rejection of a deal to curb nuclear weapons development.

World leaders meeting at the Group of Seven summit in Canada called for a de-escalation of the worst-ever conflict between the regional foes, saying Iran must never have a nuclear weapon while affirming Israel’s right to defend itself, Reuters reported.

French President Emmanuel Macron said Trump, who was leaving the summit a day early due to the Middle East situation, had proposed a ceasefire for Iran and Israel.

“There is an offer that has been made, especially to have a ceasefire and to initiate broader discussions. And I think this is a very good thing,” Macron told reporters. “So now we need to see what the stakeholders will do.”

Trump has repeatedly urged Iran to give up its nuclear weapons ambitions.

“Iran should have signed the ‘deal’ I told them to sign. What a shame, and waste of human life. Simply stated, IRAN CAN NOT HAVE A NUCLEAR WEAPON. I said it over and over again! Everyone should immediately evacuate Tehran!” Trump wrote on his Truth Social media platform on Monday.

Axios reported the White House is discussing with Iran the possibility of a meeting this week between U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff and Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi. Reuters couldn’t immediately verify details of the Axios report.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told Fox News that Trump was still aiming for a nuclear deal with Iran, while adding the U.S. would defend its assets in the region.

Iranian media reported explosions and heavy air defence fire in Tehran early on Tuesday, with smoke rising in the city’s east after an explosion of suspected Israeli projectiles.

Air defences were activated also in Natanz, home to key nuclear installations 320 km away, the Asriran news website reported.

Late on Monday, Israel said it hit Iran’s broadcasting authority, and footage showed a newsreader hurrying from her seat as a blast struck. Iranian state television said the strike killed two people.

In Israel, air raid sirens wailed in Tel Aviv after midnight but there were no reports of missile strikes.

Iranian officials have reported 224 deaths, mostly civilians, in five days, while Israel said 24 civilians had been killed.