Israel has announced a “tactical pause in military activity” in parts of Gaza, and the creation of what it said were “designated secure routes” for UN aid convoys.
It follows mounting international criticism of Israel’s restrictions on aid entering Gaza.
Last week, the UN said more than 100 Palestinians had died of starvation and malnutrition since October 2023, primarily children.
In a statement overnight, the UN children’s agency UNICEF said one in three Palestinians in Gaza “has not eaten for days”.
Aid and starvation
In March, Israel blocked the entry of food, medicine, fuel and other aid supplies to Gaza. It said this was to pressure Hamas to release the estimated 50 hostages it still held.
In May, Israel partially lifted the blockade in response to international pressure. Since then, The Associated Press reports an average of 69 trucks per day have entered the strip, below the 500 to 600 the UN says is required for Gaza’s population.
The World Health Organisation has accused the Israeli Government of causing “man-made... mass starvation”.
Last week, the UN reported the IDF has killed more than 1,000 Palestinians trying to access food since October 2023, the majority of whom were killed near aid distribution sites run by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), a U.S.-Israel-backed organisation.
The IDF and GHF disputed the figures and said they were investigating.
According to the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry, 10 Palestinians starved to death in one night last week.
The WHO also said overnight week that 24 children under the age of five had died of malnutrition so far this year.
Israel has consistently accused the UN of allowing Hamas to steal its aid, and of deliberately failing to distribute aid.
The UN denies this, and says Israel was not providing saferoutes for convoys to travel through Gaza.
Over the weekend, The New York Times reported several unnamed senior Israeli military officials assaying there was no proof that Hamas routinely stole UN aid, but did steal from smaller aid organisations. The IDF did not publicly respond to these reports.
Pauses
In a statement released yesterday, the Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) announced it would pause military operations daily in three areas of Gaza from 10am-8pm.
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It said it would introduce “designated secure routes” for aid trucks “to enable the safe movement of UN convoys delivering food and medicine to the population”.
Additionally, the IDF said it would permit aid drops by plane.
The UN’s key agency in Gaza, UNRWA, said “driving aid through is much easier, more effective, faster, cheaper, and safer [than air drops]... It’s more dignified for the people of Gaza.”
Gaza Health Ministry director Dr Muneer al-Boursh said the measures did not meet the requirements of Gaza’s people, saying: “Every delay is measured by another funeral”.
Ceasefire talks
Last week, Israel and the U.S.withdrew from ceasefire talks. Israel says it wants Hamas to relinquish control and its arms in Gaza, and return the remaining hostages takenon 7 October 2023.
Hamas says it is seeking a permanent ceasefire, and for Israel to withdraw its troops from Gaza entirely, in exchange for the hostages being released.
Over the weekend, U.S. President Donald Trump said he believed Hamas “didn’t want” a ceasefire, while Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel would explore “alternative options” to retrieve the remaining hostages.
Global response
Last week, a group of 100 humanitarian agencies issued a joint statement warning the level of aid was now not only placing Gaza’s entire population at risk of acute malnutrition, but that their own employees and aid partners were at risk of malnutrition themselves.
Media organisations also raised concerns about the health of their staff in Gaza last week. The BBC, Reuters, the Associated Press, and Agence France-Presse said they were “deeply alarmed” about “the threat of starvation” to their reporters.
Independent groups Reporters Without Borders and the Committee to Protect Journalists say Israel has killed nearly 200 journalists since October 2023.
The leaders of the UK, Germany, and France met on Friday to discuss the crisis, issuing a statement urging Israel to lift aid restrictions and describing it as a “humanitarian catastrophe”.
Australia's response
Appearing on the ABC yesterday, PM Anthony Albanese said the Israeli Government was “losing support” internationally, saying “you can’t hold innocent people responsible” for the actions of Hamas, which Australia classifies as a terrorist organisation.
Albanese accused Israel of “clearly” breaching international law in stopping the flow of aid.
The PM said Australia was not ready to recognise a Palestinian state.France is set to be the first in the UN Security Council to formally do so, in front of the UN General Assembly in September.
