At least 12 Palestinians drowned Monday while trying to retrieve humanitarian aid dropped into the Mediterranean Sea off the Gaza Strip, according to the Gaza Health Ministry, which is run by Iranian-backed Hamas terrorists.

The crates of aid fell into the Mediterranean off the coast of Beit Lahia in northern Gaza, multiple media outlets reported. Anadolu Agency, a state-run media outlet in Turkey, reported six other Palestinians died Monday during a stampede to reach the aid. It cited Gaza's government media office, which is also run by Hamas, as saying some aid fell into the sea, inside Israel, or in war zones.

"The aid airdrops pose a real threat to the lives of hungry Palestinians," Gaza's government media office said in a statement, according to Anadolu Agency. "This all put the lives of people in real danger."

It is unknown which country was responsible for the airdrops; but CNN reported the U.S., Egypt, Germany, Great Britain, Singapore, and a joint United Arab Emirates-Jordanian mission made airdrops over Gaza on Monday.

Sabrina Singh, the deputy press secretary for the Pentagon, said during Tuesday's briefing that since March 2, U.S. Central Command has conducted 17 assistance airdrops into Gaza containing more than eight tons of food items, such as rice, flour, pasta, and canned food.

"As always, safety is a top priority when planning these airdrops," Singh said. "Of note, during [Monday's] humanitarian airdrop, which included approximately 80 bundles, three bundles were reported to have had parachute malfunctions and landed in the water.

"It is important to note that drop zones are chosen to mitigate potential failures of parachutes to deploy. These humanitarian aid drops occur over water, and the wind causes the bundles to drift over to land. In the event of a parachute malfunction, the bundles land in the water."

Israel has been accused of placing strict restrictions on humanitarian aid entering Gaza, raising fears of a famine. But the U.S. reportedly has said it has received written assurance from Israel that it's not blocking humanitarian aid, and the U.S. military is seeking to establish a temporary maritime corridor for humanitarian assistance that could be operational within the coming weeks, according to the Pentagon.

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