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Arab World

Israel ‘Pause’ in Gaza Had No Impact on Aid Supplies, Says WHO

Gaza municipality employees and some civil defense workers inspect the site following the Israeli military bombardment of the Gaza Municipality garage on al-Wahda Street, in the al-Daraj neighborhood in Gaza City on June 21, 2024, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian Hamas group. (AFP)
Gaza municipality employees and some civil defense workers inspect the site following the Israeli military bombardment of the Gaza Municipality garage on al-Wahda Street, in the al-Daraj neighborhood in Gaza City on June 21, 2024, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian Hamas group. (AFP)
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Israel ‘Pause’ in Gaza Had No Impact on Aid Supplies, Says WHO

Gaza municipality employees and some civil defense workers inspect the site following the Israeli military bombardment of the Gaza Municipality garage on al-Wahda Street, in the al-Daraj neighborhood in Gaza City on June 21, 2024, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian Hamas group. (AFP)
Gaza municipality employees and some civil defense workers inspect the site following the Israeli military bombardment of the Gaza Municipality garage on al-Wahda Street, in the al-Daraj neighborhood in Gaza City on June 21, 2024, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian Hamas group. (AFP)

A daily "pause" the Israeli military declared in Gaza to facilitate aid flows has had no impact on deliveries of badly needed supplies, the UN's health agency said on Friday.

More than eight months of war, sparked by Hamas's unprecedented October 7 attack on Israel, have led to dire humanitarian conditions in the Palestinian territory and repeated UN warnings of famine.

"We did not see an impact on the humanitarian supplies coming in since that... unilateral announcement of this technical pause," said Richard Peeperkorn, the World Health Organization (WHO) representative in the Palestinian territories.

Medical charity Doctors Without Borders (MSF) warned in a statement that "without a significant refill of medical supplies in the coming days" the NGO may have to "stop or drastically reduce some of its medical activities in Gaza".

Over the weekend, the Israeli military announced a daily humanitarian "pause" in fighting on a key road in southern Gaza.

Days later, however, a United Nations spokesman said: "This has yet to translate into more aid reaching people in need".

According to the WHO, as of May 17, only 750 people remained in the city of Rafah.

There were between 60,000 and 75,000 in the Al-Mawasi area in the south of the Gaza Strip, where many Palestinians have taken refuge since the start of the Israeli offensive in Rafah.

Dr Thanos Gargavanis, a trauma surgeon and emergency officer at the WHO, said the UN in Gaza was trying to "operate in an unworkable environment".

"We have patients with severe burns, open fractures, and we don't even have enough painkillers to alleviate their suffering," said MSF medical coordinator Guillemette Thomas.

Thomas said that in Nasser and Al Aqsa hospitals, MSF teams had been forced to reduce the "frequency of dressing changes for patients with severe burns due to the lack of sterile compress gauzes", which could lead to more infections.

MSF has 400 local Palestinian employees and between 20 and 30 international staff in Gaza.

- Medical evacuations -

MSF and the WHO are calling for the Rafah crossing between Gaza and Egypt to be reopened for humanitarian aid and medical evacuations.

Another alternative for medical evacuations would be the Kerem Shalom crossing in Israel, Peeperkorn said, adding that it should only be done when safe.

It would be "for a sustained transfer of patients from Gaza to the West Bank and East Jerusalem referral hospitals. Just like it was prior to the war," he said.

"We have six trucks, filled with 37 tons of supplies, the vast majority of which are essential medical items that have been waiting since June 14," MSF's Thomas said, adding that the situation was "incomprehensible and unacceptable".

According to the WHO, only 17 of the 36 hospitals in Gaza are operational, and even then, only partially.

Some 4,900 patients have been evacuated from Gaza for war-related or chronic medical reasons since October 7, and the WHO currently estimates that at least 10,000 more people need to be evacuated.

No patients have been evacuated since the closure of the Rafah crossing on May 7, the WHO added.

The October Hamas attack on Israel resulted in the deaths of 1,194 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on Israeli official figures.

The fighters also seized hostages, 116 of whom remain in Gaza although the army says 41 of whom are dead.

Israel's retaliatory offensive in Gaza has killed at least 37,431 people, also mostly civilians, according to the health ministry in the Hamas-ruled territory.

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Arab World

Hamas Says Path for Gaza Must Begin with End to ‘Aggression’ 

Makeshift tents of displaced Palestinian families among the ruins of their homes at sunset during the holy month of Ramadan in Jabaliya northern Gaza Strip on, 19 February 2026. (EPA)
Makeshift tents of displaced Palestinian families among the ruins of their homes at sunset during the holy month of Ramadan in Jabaliya northern Gaza Strip on, 19 February 2026. (EPA)
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Hamas Says Path for Gaza Must Begin with End to ‘Aggression’ 

Makeshift tents of displaced Palestinian families among the ruins of their homes at sunset during the holy month of Ramadan in Jabaliya northern Gaza Strip on, 19 February 2026. (EPA)
Makeshift tents of displaced Palestinian families among the ruins of their homes at sunset during the holy month of Ramadan in Jabaliya northern Gaza Strip on, 19 February 2026. (EPA)

Discussions on Gaza's future must begin with a total halt to Israeli "aggression", the Palestinian movement Hamas said after US President Donald Trump's Board of Peace met for the first time.

"Any political process or any arrangement under discussion concerning the Gaza Strip and the future of our Palestinian people must start with the total halt of aggression, the lifting of the blockade, and the guarantee of our people's legitimate national rights, first and foremost their right to freedom and self-determination," Hamas said in a statement Thursday.

Trump's board met for its inaugural session in Washington on Thursday, with a number of countries pledging money and personnel to rebuild the Palestinian territory, more than four months into a fragile ceasefire between Israel and Hamas.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has insisted however that Hamas must disarm before any reconstruction begins.

"We agreed with our ally the US that there will be no reconstruction of Gaza before the demilitarization of Gaza," Netanyahu said.

The Israeli leader did not attend the Washington meeting but was represented by his foreign minister Gideon Saar.

Trump said several countries had pledged more than seven billion dollars to rebuild the territory.

Muslim-majority Indonesia will take a deputy commander role in a nascent International Stabilization Force, the unit's American chief Major General Jasper Jeffers said.

Trump, whose plan for Gaza was endorsed by the UN Security Council in November, also said five countries had committed to providing troops, including Morocco, Kazakhstan, Kosovo and Albania.

Arab World

Official Contacts Aim to Keep Lebanon out of War on Iran as Israel Raises Readiness on Northern Front 

This photograph shows a memorial for slain Lebanese Hezbollah longtime leader Hassan Nasrallah at the entrance of the southern village of Qannarit on February 16, 2026. (AFP)
This photograph shows a memorial for slain Lebanese Hezbollah longtime leader Hassan Nasrallah at the entrance of the southern village of Qannarit on February 16, 2026. (AFP)
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Official Contacts Aim to Keep Lebanon out of War on Iran as Israel Raises Readiness on Northern Front 

This photograph shows a memorial for slain Lebanese Hezbollah longtime leader Hassan Nasrallah at the entrance of the southern village of Qannarit on February 16, 2026. (AFP)
This photograph shows a memorial for slain Lebanese Hezbollah longtime leader Hassan Nasrallah at the entrance of the southern village of Qannarit on February 16, 2026. (AFP)

Israel has raised the alert level of its military along the border with Lebanon, raising questions that Lebanon’s south may again be involved in a regional confrontation should the US attack Iran.

Given the heightened tensions between the US and Iran, questions have been asked over whether Hezbollah will become involved in a new war. Its Secretary-General Sheikh Naim Qassem had recently announced that the party will not remain on the side if Iran is attacked.

On the ground, Israel blew up houses in southern Lebanon border towns and carried out air strikes in the south. Israeli military spokesman Avichay Adraee said the raids targeted “Hezbollah infrastructure,” including arms caches and rocket launchers.

Their presence in the south is a violation of current agreements, he added.

Amid the high regional tensions, Israel’s Maariv quoted a military source as saying that the army has come up with plans, including a preemptive strike against Hezbollah, which would drag the south and the whole of Lebanon into a new war.

Ministerial sources told Asharq Al-Awsat that the presidency has been carrying out internal and foreign contacts since Thursday morning to keep Lebanon out of any escalation.

Hezbollah had launched a “support front” war against Israel a day after Hamas’ October 7, 2023 attack. In 2024, the war spiraled into an all-out conflict, with Israel decimating the Hezbollah leadership and severely weakening the party.

Israel believes that Hezbollah has been rebuilding its capabilities since the ceasefire that was struck in November 2024.

Kassim Kassir, a political analyst who is close to Hezbollah, told Asharq Al-Awsat: “No one knows what Hezbollah will do because the situation is tied the extent of the attack, should it happen.”

He noted that Qassem was ambiguous when he said the party will decide what to do when the time is right, but at any rate, he stressed that the party will not remain on the sidelines or abandon Iran.

“No one knows what Hezbollah’s abilities are, so everything is possible,” Kassir said.

Riad Kahwaji, a security and defense affairs expert, said he does not rule out the possibility that Hezbollah would join the war should the US attack Iran.

Speaking to Asharq Al-Awsat, he stressed that Iran is now the United States’ main target, when previously it used to confront its proxies.

It has now taken the fight directly to the heart of the problem, which is the Iranian regime, he remarked.

The extent of the military mobilization in the region and the frequent American statements about regime change all indicate that a major military operation may be imminent, he added.

Israel’s military also favors preemptive operations, so it is watching Hezbollah, which remains Iran’s most powerful regional proxy despite the blows it received in 2024 war, Kahwaji said.

Hezbollah still possesses a rocket arsenal that can threaten Israel, he remarked.

Israel’s high level of alert on the border with Lebanon could be in readiness for any development. Should Tel Aviv receive word from Washington that it intends to attack Iran, then it could launch operations against Hezbollah as part of preemptive strikes aimed at preventing the party from launching attacks against it, Kahwaji said.

“As long as Hezbollah possesses heavy weapons, such as rockets, and drones, that it has not handed over to the army, then Lebanon will continue to be vulnerable to attacks in the next confrontation. It will be exposed to Israeli strikes as long as this issue remains unresolved,” he added.

Arab World

Israel Keen to Attack Iran’s Regional Proxies before they Can Join the War

Two Israeli soldiers launch a drone. (Israeli Army)
Two Israeli soldiers launch a drone. (Israeli Army)
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Israel Keen to Attack Iran’s Regional Proxies before they Can Join the War

Two Israeli soldiers launch a drone. (Israeli Army)
Two Israeli soldiers launch a drone. (Israeli Army)

The Israeli army is preparing to carry out “massive and unprecedented” strikes against groups backed by Iran, including the Houthis in Yemen, Hezbollah in Lebanon and armed factions in Iraq, should they join a potential war in the region, revealed Israeli military sources.

Iran is applying great pressure on these groups to take part in any upcoming conflict because the regime in Tehran concluded that their staying on the sidelines during the 12-day June war in 2025 was a strategic error, the sources said according to Israeli estimates.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had on Thursday warned Iran that his country is making its own preparations for possible Iranian missile strikes in response to any US action.

“We are prepared for any scenario,” he said, adding that if Iran attacks Israel, “they will experience a response they cannot even imagine.”

A military source said the Houthis pose a “direct threat not just to Israel, but to the whole world.” He accused the Houthis of impeding international trade in the Red Sea.

Even though the Houthis are not firing at all ships, they are still a threat to everyone, added the source. The militants are producing weapons and possess advanced technology, he warned, comparing them to a “dangerous ticking timebomb that must be swiftly neutralized.”

Israeli and foreign experts revealed that Iran is providing large financial support to its allied armed groups in the region in order for them to join a war should US President Donald Trump act on his threat to strike Iran.

In 2025, Iran allotted a billion dollars to these groups so that they can carry out rocket attacks against Israel.

It remains to be seen if these groups will respond to Iran’s pressure. Israeli estimates believe that the Kataib Hezbollah in Iraq are unlikely to join a war, while Hezbollah and the Houthis are more prepared to do so.

Israel has turned to mediators to warn these parties that any attack against it will be met with a “massive and unprecedented response.”

In Lebanon, the sources said that the military operations Israel is carrying out against Hezbollah and other armed groups are aimed at undermining the party’s efforts to bolster its combat abilities.

They acknowledged, however, that the Israeli military establishment senses that Hezbollah is rebuilding its capabilities at a faster pace than Israel’s operations at reining it in.

The Houthis, meanwhile, have a relatively greater margin of independence, but they are always ready to take part in any regional war to shift attention away from the situation inside Yemen, said Israeli estimates.

The Houthis are receiving Iranian funds to boost their military capabilities and produce more weapons. They also continue to smuggle weapons to Hamas in Gaza. Israel also accuses them of extorting several countries, whereby they pledge not to attack their ships in exchange for money.

The Houthis are ultimately fully supportive of Iran’s goals despite the blows they have been dealt by Israel. The Houthis are suffering from a drop in combat abilities. The pace of their training of fighters has also dropped, while their airports have been damaged in Israeli attacks and the Houthis are facing difficulties in rebuilding them.

Despite the losses, the Houthis are still a threat. They possess heavy long-range missiles and drones and still have the ability to shut Israel’s southern Eilat port.