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US Says Israel Must Show No Gaza ‘Policy of Starvation’

Palestinian children queue to receive food cooked by a charity kitchen, amid the Israel-Hamas conflict, in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip, October 16, 2024. (Reuters)
Palestinian children queue to receive food cooked by a charity kitchen, amid the Israel-Hamas conflict, in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip, October 16, 2024. (Reuters)
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US Says Israel Must Show No Gaza ‘Policy of Starvation’

Palestinian children queue to receive food cooked by a charity kitchen, amid the Israel-Hamas conflict, in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip, October 16, 2024. (Reuters)
Palestinian children queue to receive food cooked by a charity kitchen, amid the Israel-Hamas conflict, in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip, October 16, 2024. (Reuters)

The United States is watching to ensure that Israel's actions on the ground show that it does not have a "policy of starvation" in the northern Gaza Strip, US Ambassador to the UN Linda Thomas-Greenfield told the Security Council on Wednesday.

She told the 15-member council that such a policy would be "horrific and unacceptable and would have implications under international law and US law."

"The Government of Israel has said that this is not their policy, that food and other essential supplies will not be cut off, and we will be watching to see that Israel's actions on the ground match this statement," Thomas-Greenfield said.

The United States has told Israel it must take steps in the next month to improve the humanitarian situation in the Palestinian enclave or face potential restrictions on US military aid, US officials said on Tuesday.

Israel "remains committed to working with our international partners to ensure aid reaches those who need it" in the Gaza Strip, Israel's UN Ambassador Danny Danon told reporters ahead of the Security Council meeting.

"The problem in Gaza is not a lack of aid. The problem is Hamas, which hijacks the aid - stealing, storing and selling it to feed their terror machine, while civilians suffer," he said.

Hamas has repeatedly denied Israeli allegations that it was stealing aid and says Israel is to blame for shortages.

The Israeli military said on Wednesday it has allowed 50 trucks of humanitarian aid into northern Gaza in wake of the US warning.  

COGAT, the Israeli military body in charge of civilian affairs in Gaza, said the delivery was made at the direction of Defense Minister Yoav Gallant and the "political echelon."  

Northern Gaza was the first target of Israel’s massive air and ground offensive after Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack ignited the war. The region has suffered heavy destruction and has been completely encircled by Israeli forces for nearly a year.  

No food entered northern Gaza for the first two weeks of this month, according to the World Food Program, as Israel launched another major military operation there. That raised fears that Israel planned to implement a plan by former generals to depopulate northern Gaza.  

Israel began allowing food shipments in again on Monday.  

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, in a letter to their Israeli counterparts on Sunday, said Israel had 30 days to increase the number of aid trucks getting into the strip daily to 350 -- or the US would reconsider weapons shipments.  

The US has spent at least $17.9 billion on military aid to Israel since the war in Gaza began, according to a report for Brown University’s Costs of War project.  

The aid entering the strip Wednesday traveled from Jordan into north Gaza after passing Israeli inspection and contained food, water, medical supplies and shelter equipment, COGAT said.

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Arab World

Senior Hamas Official Reveals Gaza Political Chief Wounded in Israeli Strike

Hamas official Ali al-Amoudi. (Hamas-affiliated Palestinian Information Center)
Hamas official Ali al-Amoudi. (Hamas-affiliated Palestinian Information Center)
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Senior Hamas Official Reveals Gaza Political Chief Wounded in Israeli Strike

Hamas official Ali al-Amoudi. (Hamas-affiliated Palestinian Information Center)
Hamas official Ali al-Amoudi. (Hamas-affiliated Palestinian Information Center)

A senior Hamas official has confirmed that Ali al-Amoudi, the acting head of the group's political bureau in Gaza, was wounded in an Israeli strike on a residential apartment in western Gaza City on Oct. 3 that killed five Palestinians.

Speaking to Asharq Al-Awsat late Friday on condition of anonymity, the official said al-Amoudi suffered moderate injuries, including fractures to his limbs, in the attack on the apartment in Gaza City's port district.

Al-Amoudi was inside the apartment when it was hit but survived because he was in a section away from the main impact, the official said. He declined to provide further details, saying only that al-Amoudi was in good health and receiving treatment at a secure location.

The disclosure marks the first acknowledgment by a Hamas official that al-Amoudi was inside the apartment during the strike, contradicting accounts from several sources who told Asharq Al-Awsat in recent days that he had left the building before the attack. Those sources had also confirmed his survival.

Narrow escape

Three Hamas sources had told Asharq Al-Awsat days earlier that an urgent intelligence warning reached al-Amoudi about three hours before the strike, prompting him to leave the apartment.

The report did not explicitly warn of an imminent operation targeting him personally, but the sources said he took it seriously and moved to a secure location.

In separate but consistent accounts, the sources said the warning followed suspicious Israeli drone activity detected by two operatives from the air unit of the Izz el-Deen al-Qassam Brigades, Hamas' armed wing.

On Oct. 2, the operatives spotted two Israeli intelligence drones repeatedly circling the building and the surrounding port district in western Gaza City.

The aircraft were of a type known to Palestinian security agencies for their sophisticated surveillance capabilities, the sources said. According to the sources, the drones carried advanced intelligence-gathering systems, including artificial intelligence technology designed to help identify targets with precision.

After tracking the aircraft for hours, the two operatives suspected an assassination operation against a senior figure in the area was being prepared. They alerted higher-ranking security officials, setting off a chain of warnings that eventually reached those responsible for protecting senior Hamas figures, including al-Amoudi.

The sources said al-Amoudi's sole security aide, who knew his whereabouts, immediately went to warn him. Believing he could be the target, al-Amoudi decided to leave the apartment without delay.

Roughly an hour or more later, the apartment was struck with guided missiles and one or two explosive-laden drones, according to the sources.

The senior Hamas official who confirmed al-Amoudi's injuries would neither confirm nor deny those earlier accounts.

He said Hamas commanders at various levels routinely receive intelligence reports from field operatives monitoring Israeli drone movements over Gaza. Such activity, he said, can signal possible assassination attempts or other operations in areas under surveillance.

Asharq Al-Awsat sought clarification from its earlier sources after learning that al-Amoudi had been wounded and had remained inside the apartment until the strike. Two did not respond. A third said his information had come from an internal report but offered no further explanation.

Hamas may have concealed details of al-Amoudi's injuries even from its own leaders and figures in other Palestinian factions as part of an intelligence campaign aimed at portraying Israeli strikes as failures and keeping Israeli security agencies uncertain.

Some Israeli media reports have indicated that Israeli authorities are investigating why the operation failed.

Key figure in Hamas' inner circle

Al-Amoudi has emerged as a central figure in Hamas' leadership, known within the movement for his security background and strategic thinking.

His rise through the ranks has accelerated in recent years, with a series of senior responsibilities entrusted to him since his release from Israeli imprisonment.

He was a close associate of former Hamas leader Yahya al-Sinwar, a relationship forged during their years together in Israeli prisons and maintained after their release.

Al-Amoudi was freed in 2011 in the prisoner exchange deal involving Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit.

A member of Hamas' political bureau, al-Amoudi headed the group's media department before the war.

In December 2025, he became the acting head of its political bureau in Gaza after he and several other close associates of Sinwar were tasked with running the movement in the territory. Most of those appointed were based in Khan Younis in southern Gaza.

The arrangement, however, faced opposition from some Hamas leaders, who rejected the appointments and endorsements as an attempt to bypass the movement's internal rules.

In the days and weeks before the assassination attempt, al-Amoudi had also contested an internal election to lead Hamas in Gaza against Nizar Awadallah.

The vote failed to produce a decisive winner, leading to a runoff that was subsequently suspended following a challenge to the process.

Al-Amoudi remains an influential figure in Hamas, both inside Gaza and beyond, with a significant role in shaping the movement's decisions.

Arab World

Coalition Thwarts Houthi Attempt to Smuggle Weapons at Sea as Taiz Withstands Militant Assaults

This frame grab taken on October 9, 2026, from AFPTV video footage shows a member of the Yemeni government forces firing a machine gun mounted on a pick-up truck during clashes with Houthi fighters in Hayfan district, south of Taiz, on October 8, 2026. (AFPTV /AFP)
This frame grab taken on October 9, 2026, from AFPTV video footage shows a member of the Yemeni government forces firing a machine gun mounted on a pick-up truck during clashes with Houthi fighters in Hayfan district, south of Taiz, on October 8, 2026. (AFPTV /AFP)
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Coalition Thwarts Houthi Attempt to Smuggle Weapons at Sea as Taiz Withstands Militant Assaults

This frame grab taken on October 9, 2026, from AFPTV video footage shows a member of the Yemeni government forces firing a machine gun mounted on a pick-up truck during clashes with Houthi fighters in Hayfan district, south of Taiz, on October 8, 2026. (AFPTV /AFP)
This frame grab taken on October 9, 2026, from AFPTV video footage shows a member of the Yemeni government forces firing a machine gun mounted on a pick-up truck during clashes with Houthi fighters in Hayfan district, south of Taiz, on October 8, 2026. (AFPTV /AFP)

The Coalition to Support Legitimacy in Yemen thwarted an attempt by the terrorist Houthi group to smuggle weapons at sea to Yemen’s Hodeidah governorate in a development that highlights efforts to cut off the militants’ military supply lines.

On the ground, clashes continued along fronts in Taiz as Operation Dawn of Yemen expands.

In a video on the X platform about the smuggling operation, Coalition spokesperson Major General Turki al-Malki said: "We strike them on land... we sink them in the sea."

On Saturday, Operation Dawn of Yemen entered its 13th day amid ongoing Houthi attacks on the fronts in the southwestern city of Taiz. Government forces and the Popular Resistance repelled the attacks in fierce battles, with the Houthis incurring heavy losses, according to Yemeni military statements.

The Yemeni Armed Forces announced that it carried out 1,417 precise and direct operations, using warplanes, drones and field artillery, targeting militia gatherings, reinforcements, fortified positions, firing sources, armored vehicles, combat equipment, and drone launch sites.

Yemeni Armed Forces spokesman Majed al-Nuzaili said the operations have disrupted Houthi movement, preventing them from deploying their reserves to the fronts or achieving any tactical objective on the ground.

The operations killed and injured around 800 militants, and destroyed or damaged more than 190 armored, transport and supply vehicles, as well as fortifications and firing positions, he added.

The Armed Forces on the eastern front managed to clear hostile positions and expand their scope of control, securing a new tactical field position, he went on to say.

In Taiz, al-Nuzaili said the Armed Forces and the Popular Resistance thwarted continuous waves of attacks, while warplanes targeted the militia's positions and reinforcements with concentrated strikes, inflicting heavy losses among their ranks.

The Armed Forces confirmed that their operations are strictly confined to legitimate military targets and are executed in accordance with international humanitarian law and its customary rules.

They renewed their call to citizens in areas under the control of the militias to protect their children from recruitment campaigns and from being dragged into losing battles in defense of a project that does not represent the Yemeni people and does not serve their homeland.

In another development, al-Nuzaili said that government forces and the Popular Resistance detained a number of Houthi field commanders.

According to government forces' statements, the Houthi militia continues to send reinforcements to the frontlines to compensate for its losses.

The steadfastness of government forces is preventing the Houthis from achieving their field goals, despite the continuous military pressure, they added.

The developments are not limited to Taiz. The Armed Forces announced that they made new progress in Marib, taking control of strategic positions. Meanwhile, operations on the southern and western fronts aim to deplete the group's capabilities and weaken its movements.

According to al-Nuzaili, military engineering units continue to remove mines and explosive devices planted by the Houthis, as well as securing the recaptured areas and opening roads for the armed forces.

Arab World

Are the Iran-backed Iraq Factions Facing a Financial Crisis?

A PMF patrol in Iraq. (PMF)
A PMF patrol in Iraq. (PMF)
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Are the Iran-backed Iraq Factions Facing a Financial Crisis?

A PMF patrol in Iraq. (PMF)
A PMF patrol in Iraq. (PMF)

Iraqi sources revealed that the armed factions are suffering from a “financial crisis” due to US sanctions against their commanders.

They ruled out however that the salaries of fighters of the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) would come to a halt because they are being funded from the state budget.

Commander of the US Central Command Brad Cooper said on Friday the US naval blockade has cost Iran $25 billion in lost oil revenue and the Treasury Department have managed in recent weeks to freeze $350 million that Iran had in cryptocurrency.

In a video message released Friday, Cooper revealed that Iran-backed groups such as Hezbollah, Hamas and armed factions in Iraq, which have been funded by the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) for years, now have to give the money back, reported Axios.

"The financial strain on Iran's military has become so significant that there are reports about Iran-aligned militia groups across the region withholding payments for their soldiers in order to funnel money back to the IRGC, which also isn't paying its troops," he said.

Cooper said the Iranian government is withholding salaries, pensions and benefits from public sector workers, including the internal security forces and the IRGC.

However, reliable sources, including some familiar with the internal dynamics of Iraqi factions, dismissed the US claims as “inaccurate”.

One of the sources told Asharq Al-Awsat that the factions are generally experiencing genuine financial problems, which began months ago as a result of US Treasury sanctions against most of their leaders, as well as associated banks and institutions accused of financial dealings with Tehran.

However, the source stressed that all members of the factions, who mostly operate under the PMF, receive their salaries regularly, and they have not been cut.

Financial allocations for the PMF reached around 3.6 billion US dollars under the 2025 budget to fund a force boasting around 238,000 members. This coincides with government efforts to reorganize the legal and security structure of the PMF, amid local and regional scrutiny.

The sources explained that the total number of members linked to the factions does not exceed 50,000 fighters, or slightly more. Even assuming Cooper's statements are true, their total salaries could not cover a financial deficit in Iran.

A source, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said that Iran and IRGC circles are linked to vast financial interests inside Iraq, spanning the energy, construction, and trade sectors. Furthermore, they control state-linked contracts that generate revenues far exceeding what they spend on the salaries of faction members.

The source did not rule out the existence of shadow institutions or banks linked to the factions that could continue their secret financial dealings with Iran, similar to what was recently uncovered in the case of one of the banks.

The US Treasury had placed the Iraqi International Development Bank on the sanctions list last Thursday for facilitating Iran's access to dollars, assisting it in obtaining American currency, and circumventing the economic sanctions imposed on it.

Washington accused the bank of being linked to Iranian companies that contributed to its establishment from the very beginning, and of working to transfer and deliver profits to Tehran, in addition to its connection to Iranian state and banking entities, including Bank Melli.