Hamas Test-fires Missiles to the Sea

Demonstrators wave Palestinian flags and chant slogans against Israeli settlements and plans to annex part of the West Bank. (AFP)
Demonstrators wave Palestinian flags and chant slogans against Israeli settlements and plans to annex part of the West Bank. (AFP)
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Hamas Test-fires Missiles to the Sea

Demonstrators wave Palestinian flags and chant slogans against Israeli settlements and plans to annex part of the West Bank. (AFP)
Demonstrators wave Palestinian flags and chant slogans against Israeli settlements and plans to annex part of the West Bank. (AFP)

Hamas has test-fired missiles from Gaza Strip to the sea, Israeli media revealed Saturday. This is part of al-Qassam Brigades' attempts to strengthen its military capabilities.

Hamas trials aim to boost military capability and efficiency of missiles, and to improve their scope, the Israeli security agencies revealed.

The missile launches are a cause of concern for Israeli settlers who reside near the Gaza Strip border.

The Israeli navy has repeatedly warned that Hamas may be seeking to carry out attacks by sea, just as the Fatah movement and other Palestinian factions had done in the 1970s.

Israeli media reported military concerns that Hamas and the Islamic Jihad may target gas platforms near Ashkelon during any future confrontation.

Hamas has claimed to have upgraded its missile capabilities since Israel’s last war against the Gaza Strip in 2014.

The Yedioth Ahronoth daily said Hamas and the Islamic Jihad will likely respond to Israel’s annexation plans by launching attacks from Gaza. Their recent firing of incendiary balloons may only be the beginning, it warned.

Activists had in recent days launched such balloons from Gaza towards Israel after a months-long halt.

The newspaper said the launches were a show of force and a warning to Israel that the factions would resort to old methods, which Tel Aviv had struggled to contain.

Activist Abu Yassir said: "The resumption of firing balloons came in response to Israeli violations against Al-Aqsa Mosque, as well as the decision to annex parts of the West Bank." He also said firing balloons will increase if Israel moved on with its plans against Palestinians.



UN Food Agency Says Its Food Stocks in Gaza Have Run out under Israel’s Blockade

A girl puts a pot to her head as Palestinians wait to receive food cooked by a charity kitchen, in Beit Lahia, northern Gaza Strip, April 24, 2025. (Reuters)
A girl puts a pot to her head as Palestinians wait to receive food cooked by a charity kitchen, in Beit Lahia, northern Gaza Strip, April 24, 2025. (Reuters)
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UN Food Agency Says Its Food Stocks in Gaza Have Run out under Israel’s Blockade

A girl puts a pot to her head as Palestinians wait to receive food cooked by a charity kitchen, in Beit Lahia, northern Gaza Strip, April 24, 2025. (Reuters)
A girl puts a pot to her head as Palestinians wait to receive food cooked by a charity kitchen, in Beit Lahia, northern Gaza Strip, April 24, 2025. (Reuters)

The World Food Program says its food stocks in the Gaza Strip have run out under Israel’s nearly 8-week-old blockade, ending a main source of sustenance for hundreds of thousands of Palestinians in the territory.

The WFP said in a statement that it delivered the last of its stocks to charity kitchens that it supports around Gaza. It said those kitchens are expected to run out of food in the coming days.

Some 80% of Gaza’s population of more than 2 million relies primarily on charity kitchens for food, because other sources have shut down under Israel’s blockade, according to the UN. The WFP has been supporting 47 kitchens that distribute 644,000 hot meals a day, WFP spokesperson Abeer Etefa told the Associated Press.

It was not immediately clear how many kitchens would still be operating in Gaza if those shut down. But Etefa said the WFP-backed kitchens are the major ones in Gaza.

Israel cut off entry of all food, fuel, medicine and other supplies to Gaza on March 2 and then resumed its bombardment and ground offensives two weeks later, shattering a two-month ceasefire with Hamas. It says the moves aim to pressure Hamas to release hostages it still holds. Rights groups have called the blockade a “starvation tactic” and a potential war crime.

Israel has said Gaza has enough supplies after a surge of aid entered during the ceasefire and accuses Hamas of diverting aid for its purposes. Humanitarian workers deny there is significant diversion, saying the UN strictly monitors distribution. They say the aid flow during the ceasefire was barely enough to cover the immense needs from throughout the war when only a trickle of supplies got in.

With no new goods entering Gaza, many foods have disappeared from markets, including meat, eggs, fruits, dairy products and many vegetables. Prices for what remains have risen dramatically, becoming unaffordable for much of the population. Most families rely heavily on canned goods.

Malnutrition is already surging. The UN said it identified 3,700 children suffering from acute malnutrition in March, up 80% from the month before. At the same time, because of diminishing supplies, aid groups were only able to provide nutritional supplements to some 22,000 children in March, down 70% from February. The supplements are a crucial tool for averting malnutrition.

Almost all bakeries shut down weeks ago and the WFP stopped distribution of food basics to families for lack of supplies. With stocks of most ingredients depleted, charity kitchens generally can only serve meals of pasta or rice with little added.

World Central Kitchen -- a US charity that is one of the biggest in Gaza that doesn’t rely on the WFP -- said Thursday that its kitchens had run out of proteins. Instead, they make stews from canned vegetables. Because fuel is scarce, it dismantles wooden shipping pallets to burn in its stoves, it said. It also runs the only bakery still functioning in Gaza, producing 87,000 loaves of pita a day.

The WFP said 116,000 tons of food is ready to be brought into Gaza if Israel opens the borders, enough to feed 1 million people for four months.

Israel has leveled much of Gaza with its air and ground campaign, vowing to destroy Hamas after its Oct. 7, 2023, attack on southern Israel. It has killed over 51,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, whose count does not distinguish between civilians and combatants.

In the Oct. 7 attack, gunmen killed about 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducted 251. They still hold 59 hostages after most were released in ceasefire deals.