Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Monday that his decision to resume limited aid to the Gaza Strip after a two-and-a-half month blockade came after pressure from allies who said they couldn't support Israel's renewed offensive if there are “images of hunger” coming out of the Palestinian territory.
The announcement raised hope among Palestinians that desperately needed food, medicine and other supplies would enter — but none had by Monday afternoon.
Israel has meanwhile launched a new wave of air and ground operations across the territory, and the army ordered the evacuation of Gaza’s second-largest city, Khan Younis, where Israel carried out a massive operation earlier in the war that left much of the area in ruins, The AP news reported.
On Sunday, Israel said it would allow a “basic” amount of aid into Gaza to prevent a “hunger crisis” from developing. Experts have already warned of potential famine if the blockade imposed on the territory's roughly 2 million Palestinians is not lifted.
President Donald Trump — who skipped Israel on his trip to the region last week — voiced concern about the humanitarian situation in Gaza, as did Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who said on a visit to Türkiye that he was “troubled” by it.
In a video statement posted to social media, Netanyahu said Israel's “greatest friends in the world” had told him, “We cannot accept images of hunger, mass hunger. We cannot stand that. We will not be able to support you.” Netanyahu mentioned ”senators" without giving their nationality.
Netanyahu said the situation was approaching a “red line” and a “dangerous point,” but it was not clear if he was referring to the crisis in Gaza or the potential loss of support from allies.
The video statement appeared aimed at pacifying anger from Netanyahu's nationalist base at the decision to resume aid. Two far-right governing partners have pressed Netanyahu not to allow aid into Gaza.
At least one of them, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, appeared to be on board with the latest plan.
“No more raids and going in and out, but conquering, cleansing and remaining until Hamas is destroyed," he said. “We are destroying what is still left of the Strip, simply because everything there is one big city of terror.”
The aid that would be let in would be “minimal,” Netanyahu said, without specifying precisely when it would resume, and would act as bridge toward the launch of a new aid system in Gaza, in which a US-backed organization will distribute assistance in hubs that will be secured by the Israeli military.
Israel says the plan is meant to prevent Hamas from accessing aid, which Israel says it uses to bolster its rule in Gaza.
UN agencies and aid groups have rejected the plan, saying it won't reach enough people and would weaponize aid in contravention of humanitarian principles. They have refused to take part in it.
