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Israeli Officials Signal They Want UN to Remain Key Gaza Aid Channel, Says Senior UN Official

Buildings that were destroyed during the Israeli ground and air operations stand in northern of Gaza Strip as seen from southern Israel, Thursday, July 10, 2025. (AP)
Buildings that were destroyed during the Israeli ground and air operations stand in northern of Gaza Strip as seen from southern Israel, Thursday, July 10, 2025. (AP)
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Israeli Officials Signal They Want UN to Remain Key Gaza Aid Channel, Says Senior UN Official

Buildings that were destroyed during the Israeli ground and air operations stand in northern of Gaza Strip as seen from southern Israel, Thursday, July 10, 2025. (AP)
Buildings that were destroyed during the Israeli ground and air operations stand in northern of Gaza Strip as seen from southern Israel, Thursday, July 10, 2025. (AP)

Israeli officials have signaled they want the United Nations to remain the key avenue for humanitarian deliveries in Gaza, the deputy head of the World Food Program said on Friday, noting the work of a controversial US aid group was not discussed.

"They wanted the UN to continue to be the main track for delivery, especially should there be a cease fire, and they asked us to be ready to scale up," Carl Skau, deputy executive director of the UN food agency, told reporters on Friday after visiting Gaza and Israel last week.

The US, Egypt and Qatar are trying to broker a ceasefire in the war between Israel and Palestinian group Hamas in Gaza.

Hamas said on Wednesday that the flow of aid was one of the sticking points.

Israel and the United States have publicly urged the UN to work through the new Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, but the UN has refused, questioning the group's neutrality and accusing the distribution model of militarizing aid and forcing displacement.

Skau said he met with Israeli authorities at different levels last week and that the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation "did not come up in those conversations."

"I think there were rumors of the UN being pushed out, but it was very clear in my engagement that they want the UN to continue to be the main track in delivery," Skau said.

DEATHS

Since Israel lifted an 11-week aid blockade on Gaza on May 19, allowing limited UN deliveries to resume.

The GHF launched its operation, using private US security and logistics firms to transport aid to distribution hubs, a week later.

The United Nations human rights office said on Friday that it had recorded 615 deaths near GHF sites and 183 deaths "presumably on the route of aid convoys" operated by the UN and other relief groups.

The GHF has repeatedly said there have been no deaths at any of its aid distribution sites. The group said on Friday that it has so far delivered more than 70 million meals in Gaza.

The US State Department has approved $30 million in funding for the GHF, which touts its model as "reinventing aid delivery in war zones."

Israel and the United States have accused Hamas of stealing aid from the UN-led operations, which the group denies.

Throughout the conflict, the United Nations has described its humanitarian operation in Gaza as opportunistic - facing problems with Israel's military operation, access restrictions by Israel into and throughout Gaza, and looting by armed gangs.

But the UN has said its aid distribution system works, and that was particularly proven during a two-month ceasefire, which Israel abandoned in mid-March.

The UN said it got 600-700 trucks of aid a day into Gaza during the truce and has stressed then when people know there is a steady flow of aid, the looting subsides.

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Arab World

Over 100 Children Killed in Gaza Since Ceasefire, UNICEF Says

Palestinians walk past tents used by displaced people, during a windy winter day, in Gaza City, January 13, 2026. (Reuters)
Palestinians walk past tents used by displaced people, during a windy winter day, in Gaza City, January 13, 2026. (Reuters)
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Over 100 Children Killed in Gaza Since Ceasefire, UNICEF Says

Palestinians walk past tents used by displaced people, during a windy winter day, in Gaza City, January 13, 2026. (Reuters)
Palestinians walk past tents used by displaced people, during a windy winter day, in Gaza City, January 13, 2026. (Reuters)

The UN children's agency said on Tuesday that over ​100 children have been killed in Gaza since the October ceasefire, including victims of drone and quadcopter attacks.

“More than 100 children have ‌been killed ‌in Gaza ‌since ⁠the ceasefire ​of ‌early October," UNICEF spokesperson James Elder told reporters at a UN briefing by video link from Gaza.

"Survival remains conditional, whilst ⁠the bombings and the shootings ‌have slowed, have ‍reduced during ‍the ceasefire, they have not ‍stopped."

He said that nearly all the deaths of the 60 boys and ​40 girls were from military attacks including air ⁠strikes, drone strikes, tank shelling, gunfire and quadcopters and a few were from war remnants that exploded.

The tally is likely an underestimate since it is only based on deaths for which sufficient ‌information was available, he said.

Arab World

Syrian Army Tells Kurdish Forces to Withdraw from Area East of Aleppo City

Buses carrying displaced residents drive past a building in ruins as they return to the Achrafieh neighborhood after days of fighting between government forces and Kurdish fighters in the northern city of Aleppo, Syria, Monday, Jan. 12, 2026. (AP)
Buses carrying displaced residents drive past a building in ruins as they return to the Achrafieh neighborhood after days of fighting between government forces and Kurdish fighters in the northern city of Aleppo, Syria, Monday, Jan. 12, 2026. (AP)
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Syrian Army Tells Kurdish Forces to Withdraw from Area East of Aleppo City

Buses carrying displaced residents drive past a building in ruins as they return to the Achrafieh neighborhood after days of fighting between government forces and Kurdish fighters in the northern city of Aleppo, Syria, Monday, Jan. 12, 2026. (AP)
Buses carrying displaced residents drive past a building in ruins as they return to the Achrafieh neighborhood after days of fighting between government forces and Kurdish fighters in the northern city of Aleppo, Syria, Monday, Jan. 12, 2026. (AP)

Syria's army told Kurdish forces on Tuesday to withdraw from an area they control east of Aleppo after dislodging fighters from two neighborhoods in the city in deadly clashes last week.

State television published an army statement with a map declaring a large area a "closed military zone" and said "all armed groups in this area must withdraw to east of the Euphrates" River.

The area begins near Deir Hafer, around 50 kilometers (30 miles) east of Aleppo city and extends to the Euphrates further east, as well as towards the south.

On Monday, Syria accused the US-backed, Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces of sending reinforcements to Deir Hafer and said it sent its own personnel there in response.

The SDF denied any build-up of its forces in the region.

An AFP correspondent saw government forces bringing military reinforcements including artillery to the Deir Hafer area on Tuesday.

On the weekend, Syria's government took full control of Aleppo city after taking over its Kurdish neighborhoods and evacuating fighters there to Kurdish-controlled areas in the country's northeast following days of clashes.

The violence started last Tuesday after negotiations stalled on integrating the Kurds' de facto autonomous administration and forces into the country's new government.

The SDF controls swathes of the country's oil-rich north and northeast, much of which they captured during Syria's civil war and the fight against the ISIS group.

Arab World

Syrian Interior Ministry Details Results of Security Campaigns in Latakia, Damascus Countrysides

Security personnel inside the Imam Ali bin Abi Talib Mosque in the Wadi al-Dhahab neighborhood of Homs following a bombing . (AFP)
Security personnel inside the Imam Ali bin Abi Talib Mosque in the Wadi al-Dhahab neighborhood of Homs following a bombing . (AFP)
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Syrian Interior Ministry Details Results of Security Campaigns in Latakia, Damascus Countrysides

Security personnel inside the Imam Ali bin Abi Talib Mosque in the Wadi al-Dhahab neighborhood of Homs following a bombing . (AFP)
Security personnel inside the Imam Ali bin Abi Talib Mosque in the Wadi al-Dhahab neighborhood of Homs following a bombing . (AFP)

Syria’s Interior Ministry has announced the results of a series of security operations carried out in recent days in Homs, Latakia, and the Damascus countryside, including the arrest of two alleged ISIS members accused of involvement in the bombing of the Imam Ali bin Abi Talib Mosque in Homs last month.

The ministry said the operations led to the arrest of three senior figures in a cell known as “Lieutenant Abbas,” affiliated with the “Coastal Shield Brigade” led by Miqdad Fteiha, a prominent figure loyal to the former regime.

Security forces also detained an armed group in the al-Wuroud neighborhood of Damascus that was allegedly planning “acts of sabotage.”

The operations form part of broader efforts to dismantle armed groups and restore the state’s exclusive authority over weapons.

Interior Minister Anas Khattab vowed to continue pursuing ISIS operatives and bringing them to justice.

In a post on X, he said security and intelligence services had conducted a “highly precise operation” resulting in the arrest of those involved in the December 26 attack on the Imam Ali bin Abi Talib Mosque in the Wadi al-Dhahab district of Homs, which killed eight people and wounded 18 others.

According to the Interior Ministry, security units in Homs, in coordination with the General Intelligence Service, arrested two persons identified as ISIS members. Authorities said explosive devices, various weapons, ammunition, documents, and digital evidence allegedly linking the suspects to terrorist activities were seized.

The two were referred to the Counterterrorism Directorate to complete investigations ahead of prosecution.

In a separate statement earlier Monday, the Interior Ministry said a “valuable catch” was detained by security and intelligence forces in Latakia. It said he was a key figures in the “Lieutenant Abbas” cell. Initial investigations indicated the cell had targeted internal security and army positions in the province.

Meanwhile, in the Damascus countryside, the ministry said security forces carried out a “preemptive operation” in the al-Wuroud neighborhood of Qudsaya city, arresting three individuals accused of planning armed attacks.

The ministry said security services would continue pursuing remaining members of the groups, pledging to “eradicate them completely” to ensure security and stability.