At least 112 Palestinians are said to have been killed and 760 injured in Gaza.

On the coastal road south-west of Gaza City,in the presence of Israeli tanks crowds descended on a convoy of lorries

Israel’s military say tanks fired warning shots but did not strike the lorries, adding many of the dead were trampled or run over.

Hamas rejected Israel’s account, saying there was “undeniable” evidence of “direct firing at citizens”.

The UN Security Council scheduled a closed-door emergency meeting to discuss the incident, during which Algeria – the Arab representative on the body – put forward a draft statement blaming Israeli forces for “opening fire”.

United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres condemned the incident, saying “the desperate civilians in Gaza need urgent help, including those in the north where the UN has not been able to deliver aid in more than a week”.

Earlier US President Joe Biden expressed concern the incident would complicate efforts by mediators to broker a temporary ceasefire in the war between Israel and Hamas while France said “fire by Israeli soldiers against civilians trying to access food” was “unjustifiable”.

Hamas has warned that talks in Qatar to try and secure a new ceasefire along side the release of Israeli hostages it is holding could now be jeopardised.