Gaza’s civil defence agency has said Israeli forces have killed at least 13 Palestinians, six of them in a shooting incident near a US-backed aid distribution centre in the territory’s south, AFP reports.

Civil defence spokesman Mahmud Bassal told AFP that at around 7am local time, “six people were killed and several others wounded by the forces of the Israeli occupation near the Al-Alam roundabout” in southern Gaza’s Rafah area.

Samir Abu Hadid told AFP that thousands of people had gathered near the roundabout.

“As soon as some people tried to advance towards the aid centre, the Israeli occupation forces opened fire from armoured vehicles stationed near the centre, firing into the air and then at civilians,” Abu Hadid said.