Police use water cannon to disperse demonstrators during a protest against the government of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and call for the release of hostages held by the Hamas militant group in the Gaza Strip, Saturday, May 25, 2024, in Tel Aviv, Israel.
Ariel Shalit/Associated Press/Associated Press
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Ariel Shalit/Associated Press/Associated Press
DEIR BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — Aid trucks entered Gaza from southern Israel on Sunday under a new deal after Israeli forces seized the Palestinian side of the Rafah crossing earlier this month. Crossing the Rafah border with Egypt. But it’s unclear whether humanitarian groups will be able to receive aid due to ongoing fighting in the area.
Egypt has refused to reopen its side of the Rafah crossing until control of the Gaza side is returned to the Palestinians. It agreed to temporarily divert traffic through the Israeli Kerem Shalom crossing, Gaza’s main cargo terminal, following a phone call between U.S. President Joe Biden and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi.
But the crossing has been largely inaccessible due to fighting sparked by an Israeli attack in the nearby city of Rafah. Israel says it has allowed hundreds of trucks in, but U.N. agencies say it is often too dangerous to retrieve aid from the other side.
The war between Israel and Hamas, now in its eighth month, has killed nearly 36,000 Palestinians, according to local health officials. About 80% of the 2.3 million people have fled their homes, severe hunger is widespread, and U.N. officials say parts of the territory are experiencing famine.
The war started when Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, in which Palestinian militants killed about 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and took about 250 hostages. Hamas still holds about 100 hostages and the bodies of about 30 people, most of whom were released during last year’s ceasefire.
Hamas claimed to have captured an Israeli soldier during fighting in northern Gaza and released video late Saturday showing a wounded man being dragged through a tunnel. The Israeli military denies that any soldiers were captured, and Hamas has not provided any other evidence to substantiate its claims.
On Sunday, Egypt’s state-run Al-Qahera TV broadcast footage of trucks allegedly entering Gaza through Kerem Shalom. Khaled Zayed, the head of the Egyptian Red Crescent Society in Sinai, which is responsible for delivering aid from the Egyptian side of the Rafah crossing, told The Associated Press that 200 aid trucks and four fuel trucks are planned for the Sunday.
It is unclear whether the United Nations will be able to withdraw aid from Gaza.
Aid has been largely cut off in southern Gaza since Israel launched its so-called limited invasion of Rafah on May 6. Other areas were displaced.
Northern Gaza has been largely blockaded by Israeli forces for months and the U.N. World Food Program says famine has broken out there, but Israel has opened two land routes in the face of world outrage after Israeli attacks killed seven aid workers. Route to receive assistance.
Dozens of trucks are also entering Gaza every day through the U.S.-built floating terminals, but capacity is still well below the 150 trucks per day that officials had hoped. Aid groups say a total of 600 trucks are needed in the region every day to meet the huge humanitarian needs.
Stormy weather caused a dock and a small U.S. warship to land near the southern Israeli city of Ashdod on Saturday. U.S. Central Command said four of its ships were affected by rough seas, two of which were anchored near docks off the coast of Gaza and two in Israel.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel must take over Rafah in order to eliminate the last remnants of Hamas and achieve a “total victory” over the militants who have recently invaded Gaza where the army has been operating Other areas regrouped.
Netanyahu faces growing pressure from the Israeli public to reach a deal with Hamas to release the remaining hostages, but Hamas has refused to do so without guarantees of an end to the war and a full withdrawal of Israeli troops. Do. Netanyahu and other Israeli leaders have ruled out that possibility.
Scuffles broke out between Israeli police and protesters as thousands gathered in Tel Aviv on Saturday to demonstrate against the government and demand the return of hostages. Protesters are demanding Netanyahu’s resignation and new elections.
International pressure mounted as the war increasingly isolated Israel on the world stage.
Last week, three European countries recognized the Palestinian state and the International Criminal Court’s chief prosecutor requested arrest warrants for Netanyahu, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Galant and three Hamas leaders.
On Friday, the International Court of Justice ordered Israel to halt its military offensive against Rafah. The U.N.’s top court also said Israel must allow war crimes investigators access to Gaza.
Israel is unlikely to comply with the orders and has harshly condemned the ICC’s move to issue an arrest warrant for its leader. Israel says it has done everything it can to avoid harming civilians and blames Hamas for the civilian deaths as the militants operate in densely populated residential areas.
Gaza’s health ministry said on Sunday that the bodies of 81 victims of Israeli attacks had been taken to local hospitals in the past 24 hours. This brings the total number of Palestinian war-related deaths to at least 35,984. The ministry does not distinguish between civilians and militants when counting people.
The Israeli government says 14,000 militants and 16,000 civilians have been killed in Gaza since the war began, but has provided no evidence.
