Khan Younis, December 1 (RHC)-- Israeli forces killed at least 40 Palestinians in a single attack on the Jabalia refugee camp in northern Gaza, as the death toll from Israeli attacks on Saturday rose to at least 100 people.

Earlier, Israeli air raids in southern Khan Younis killed at least 12 Palestinians waiting for food aid as well as four workers from World Central Kitchen and Save the Children.

World Central Kitchen, a U.S.-based charity which runs community kitchens in Gaza, said it had paused its operations after the attack on Saturday.

“We are heartbroken to share that a vehicle carrying World Central Kitchen colleagues was hit by an Israeli air strike in Gaza,” WCK said in a statement.  “At this time, we are working with incomplete information and are urgently seeking more details.”

The Israeli military claimed that it was targeting a “terrorist” who had participated in the October 7 attacks on Israel and was employed by the WCK.

However, the WCK said it had “no knowledge that any individual in the vehicle had alleged ties to the October 7 Hamas attack.”

Earlier on Saturday, Palestinian Civil Defense spokesperson Mahmoud Basal told the AFP news agency that the bodies of “at least five dead were transported [to a hospital], including the three employees of World Central Kitchen” following the attack.

“All three men worked for WCK and they were hit while driving in a WCK four-wheel drive vehicle in Khan Younis,” Basal said, adding that the vehicle had been “marked with its logo clearly visible.”

The Israeli army did not mention the other victims of the attack, or its effect on getting food to the starving population of Gaza who rely on the Washington-based charity’s services.

Al Jazeera’s Hind Khoudary, reporting from Deir el-Balah in central Gaza, said the attack would have grave implications for the provision of aid in Gaza.  “So, it’s beyond attacking Palestinians, Palestinian workers, aid organizations.  It’s attacking all sources of aid, and all sources of community kitchens, and those who have been working tirelessly to prevent starvation in Gaza,” she said.

The Israeli military has repeatedly targeted aid workers since the start of the war on Gaza in October 2023.  A series of Israeli air attacks hit a convoy of the WCK in April, killing seven of its aid workers.  Another staff member was killed in an Israeli attack in July.

The Israeli military claimed that those attacks were “mistakes” and that it dismissed two officers and reprimanded three others for their role.