John Fetterman blames Hamas for deaths of dozens of Palestinians apparently shot by Israeli military

The Pennsylvania Senator has been an unwavering supporter of the Israeli invasion of Gaza

Senator John Fetterman has blamed Hamas for the deaths of more than 100 Palestinians who witnesses say were killed when Israeli forces opened fire as they rushed to get supplies from an aid convoy in Gaza.

The Pennsylvania senator claimed that “Hamas alone owns this calamity” and rejected widespread international condemnation — including from the Biden administration — of the “massacre” in a post on X/Twitter on Friday.

“I reject statements from nations with atrocious human rights records: China, Saudi Arabia, and Turkey,” Mr Fetterman wrote.

“Without a doubt, this is a humanitarian tragedy. Hamas alone owns this calamity. We must demand Hamas free the hostages and surrender — ending suffering, death and chaos.”

On Thursday, the Gaza Health Ministry said that 112 Palestinians were killed and more than 700 wounded after IDF forces fired into a crowd who had gathered at a food distribution point.

Israeli officials have said many of the fatalities occurred in a chaotic crush to reach the food trucks, and that their troops fired because they believed the crowd posed a threat. The IDF has said it is reviewing the incident.

Senator John Fetterman has been an outspoken backer of Israel’s response to the 7 October terror attacks (Getty Images)

Palestinian officials have described the deaths, which took the death toll in Gaza to more than 30,000 in five months since Israel launched its ground invasion, as a “massacre”.

Doctors in Gaza City who treated the wounded said over 80 per cent had been struck by gunfire, according to Reuters.

Israel has come under increasing international pressure to allow an independent inquiry into the deaths, which occurred amid a humanitarian disaster unfolding in the narrow strip that is home to more than two million people.

The United States, Israel’s closest ally, has called for a thorough investigation and said the incident shows the need for “expanded humanitarian aid to make its way into Gaza”.

Palestinians receive medical care at Kamal Edwan Hospital in Beit Lahia, in the northern Gaza Strip, after Israeli forces opened fire on an aid truck convoy (AFP via Getty Images)

French President Emmanuel Macron expressed his “deep indignation” and the “strongest condemnation of these shootings”.

Germany called on the Israeli army to “fully explain how the mass panic and shooting could have happened”, according to Reuters.

The governments of India, Brazil, China, Turkey, Saudi Arabia and several other Middle East countries have voiced their condemnation of the killings.

Mr Fetterman was seen as a champion of progressive causes when he was elected to the Senate in 2022.

He has since rejected the progressive label, and emerged as one of Israel’s most unwavering supporters after the 7 October attacks by Hamas, in which around 1,200 Israelis were killed and more than 250 taken hostage.

Mr Fetterman was sharply critical of South Africa for leading a genocide case against Israel at the International Court of Justice.

In December, Mr Fetterman blamed TikTok for giving young people a “warped” view of the Israel-Hamas war.

Mr Fetterman did not immediately respond to a request for clarification about his comments on the aid truck deaths by The Independent.