Israel says it has put “basic amounts” of food in Gaza after nearly three months of lockdown that left many Palestinians on the brink of starvation.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said his cabinet was acting on the IDF’s recommendations “due to the operational need to allow for the expansion of fierce combat.”
On Saturday, Israel launched a new “spread” ground attack in Gaza, dubbed “Gideon’s Tank.”
On Sunday alone, Israel’s strike killed more than 100 people, according to the Gaza Ministry of Health. This does not distinguish between civilians and combatants. The strike forced the closing of hospitals in Indonesia, the main health facility serving northern Gaza.
Netanyahu mentioned the need to prevent a “hunger crisis,” where the troops “will put continued operations at risk to defeat Hamas.”
According to the integrated food security stage classification, an international leading authority on the severity of the hunger crisis, roughly half a million Palestinians in Gaza already live in “devastating” levels of hunger and face the potential for starvation. The other million people can barely get enough food, it added.
Food security experts said last week that Gaza would likely fall into hunger if Israel didn’t lift the lockdown and halt its military campaign.
It was not immediately clear when aid would enter Gaza or how to do so. Netanyahu said Israel would work to ensure Hamas does not control the distribution of aid and prevent aid from reaching Hamas militants.
Israel began its biggest attack since crushing the ceasefire in March with the aim of seizing its territory and banishing hundreds of thousands of Palestinians.
The ceasefire meeting continues
Israel is pressured by Hamas to agree to a temporary ceasefire that will release hostages from Gaza, but not necessarily end the war. Hamas says he wants a complete withdrawal of Israeli forces and a path to end the war as part of any deal.
Netanyahu’s office said his negotiation team in Qatar was “working to realize every opportunity of the deal,” including the remaining 58 hostages, Hamas to end the fight in exchange for releases of exile and territorial disarmament from Gaza.
Hamas refused to leave Gaza and disarm.
Since Israel ended its previous ceasefire, Gaza’s health ministry says almost 3,000 people have been killed.
Israel’s frustration is growing. The small but increasing number of Israelis have refused to compete in military service, and even imprisonment is at risk. Other Israelis display photos of children killed in Gaza during weekly rally demanding deals to free all hostages and end the war.
The Israel-Hamas War began when Hamas militants attacked southern Israel on October 7, 2023, killing about 1,200 people, most of which killed civilians. Hamas has taken 251 hostages and currently has 57 people, of which 22 are believed to be alive.
The subsequent Israeli attacks have killed more than 50,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children, according to the Gaza Ministry of Health, Hamas-run.
The Israeli army says 856 of its soldiers have died since the start of the war.
Additional sources •AP
