Al-Awda Hospital and two witnesses told The Associated Press the Palestinians were killed when troops opened fire on a crowd heading to a site run by the Israeli-backed U.S. contractor Gaza Humanitarian Foundation in the Netzarim corridor area, hundreds of meters (yards) from the site.

Israeli forces killed four aid seekers traveling on Sunday through a military zone south of Gaza City — an area regularly used by Palestinians trying to reach a food distribution point, a hospital and witnesses said.

Two years ago, Gaza’s largest city was sprawling with life. Classrooms brimmed with schoolchildren, markets were full of shoppers and beachside cafes offered respite for those escaping the stresses of a besieged enclave.