Israel came under growing international pressure on Friday to let more humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip, on the brink of famine, as its army admitted “serious errors” in the deaths of seven aid workers killed in a strike . The Gaza Strip has been the scene for nearly six months of a devastating war between Israel and Hamas, triggered by an unprecedented attack by the terrorist movement on Israeli soil on October 7. According to a latest Hamas report on Friday, 33,091 people, mostly civilians, were killed there.
The main information:
- Israel faces international pressure to let more humanitarian aid into Gaza, on the brink of famine
- More than 33,000 Palestinian deaths since the start of the conflict, says Hamas
- UN Human Rights Council demands end to all arms sales to Israel
Human Rights Council calls for halt to arms sales to Israel
The UN Human Rights Council on Friday demanded a halt to all arms sales to Israel, in a resolution citing fears of “genocide” against the Palestinians. American President Joe Biden raised on Thursday for the first time the possibility of conditioning American aid to Israel on “tangible” measures in the face of the humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza.
Israel’s security cabinet has approved “immediate measures to increase humanitarian aid to the civilian population” in Gaza, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said in a statement Friday. Israel will authorize the “temporary” delivery of aid through the Israeli port of Ashdod, about 40 kilometers north of the Gaza Strip, and through the Erez crossing point, between the Palestinian territory and the south of Israel. The Israeli authorities will also allow “the increase in Jordanian aid through Kerem Shalom”, a border post in southern Israel.
The head of American diplomacy, Antony Blinken, declared on Friday that Washington expected “results” after these commitments, and Germany also called on Israel to implement its promises “rapidly”, believing that this country had “not no more excuses.”
The conflict in brief
Israel has been carrying out a vast military operation in the Gaza Strip since the October 7 attack, carried out by Hamas commandos infiltrated from this territory. The attack resulted in the deaths of 1,170 people on the Israeli side, the majority of them civilians killed the same day, according to an AFP count based on official Israeli figures. More than 250 people were kidnapped during the attack and taken as hostages to the Gaza Strip, where 130 are still detained, among whom, according to the Israeli army, 34 died.
Israel has vowed to annihilate Hamas, which took power in 2007 in the Gaza Strip and which is considered a terrorist organization by the United States, Israel and the European Union in particular.
Request for “independent” investigation
International pressure is increasing every day on Israel, particularly since the death Monday evening of seven members of the NGO World Central Kitchen (WCK), a Palestinian and six foreigners, in an Israeli strike in the Gaza Strip. The Israeli army said in a report on Friday that it had made a series of “serious errors”, notably of judgment, stressing that it had wanted to target a “Hamas gunman” firing from the roof of one of the trucks ‘help.
Also referring to “violations of normal operating procedures”, she acknowledged that WCK had communicated its route plan, but the soldiers in charge of the strikes did not have it in hand. Two officers involved in this blunder will be fired, according to the report. WCK requested on Friday the creation of an “independent” commission of inquiry, and Poland, whose national was one of the victims, indicated that it had requested from Israel “a criminal investigation” for “murder”.
In Rafah, the Israeli army says it destroyed “an underground terrorist infrastructure”
On the ground, the Hamas press office reported Friday airstrikes and artillery fire across the Gaza Strip, particularly in Rafah (south), where nearly 1.5 million Palestinians displaced by the fighting, and Khan Younès (south). In the latter city, the Israeli army said it had destroyed “an underground terrorist infrastructure” and located weapons.
According to Hamas, 56 bodies were transported to hospitals, the majority of them children, women and the elderly. The bombings and ground offensive by Israeli forces as well as the total siege of Palestinian territory have caused a humanitarian disaster.
Almost impossible for NGOs to work in Gaza
In Brussels, Antony Blinken affirmed that “100% of the population needs humanitarian aid” in Gaza. Israel’s primary military supporter, the United States demanded from its partner a “spectacular increase” in this aid, hoping to see concrete measures taken “in the coming hours and days”. “If we lose this respect for human life, we run the risk of not being able to differentiate ourselves from those we are fighting,” said the head of American diplomacy, referring to Hamas.
After Monday’s strike, WCK announced it was suspending its operations in Gaza, increasing fears for the 2.4 million residents. Open Arms, the Spanish organization which chartered with the NGO the first humanitarian aid boat to arrive in Gaza in March, also said it was suspending its operations via the humanitarian corridor from Cyprus. On Thursday, Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), Oxfam, Médecins du Monde and Save the Children International warned of their near impossibility of working in Gaza.
At the UN, meeting on the situation of humanitarian workers and the risk of famine in Gaza
The UN Security Council is due to hold a meeting on Friday on the situation of aid workers and the risk of famine in Gaza. The Palestinian Red Crescent said Thursday that “31 children in (the) Gaza Strip died of starvation and dehydration.” And according to an Oxfam study, the population of the north of this territory survives on “less than 12% of the average daily caloric needs”. To provide assistance, several countries are carrying out airdrops, but this method cannot replace land routes, insists the UN.
Joe Biden also pressed Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday to conclude “without delay” an agreement for a ceasefire, while the land operation desired by the Israeli Prime Minister in Rafah is causing growing concern.