Israel has begun limited pauses in fighting in three areas of Gaza for 10 hours a day to address the worsening humanitarian situation.
The Israel Defence Forces (IDF) said it was halting military operations in Muwasi, Deir al Balah and Gaza City, from 10am to 8pm local time (8am to 6pm UK time) until further notice, beginning on Sunday.
In a statement, the IDF said it would also establish secure routes to help the UN and aid agencies deliver food and other supplies.
Israel’s announcement of what it calls a “tactical pause” in fighting comes after it resumed airdrops of aid into Gaza.
While the IDF reiterated claims there is “no starvation” in Gaza, it said the airdrops would include “seven pallets of aid containing flour, sugar and canned food to be provided by international organisations”.
Palestinian sources confirmed that aid had begun dropping in northern Gaza.
Palestinians carry aid supplies. Pic: Reuters
Meanwhile, two Jordanian air force planes and a United Arab Emirates aircraft have carried out three airdrops, delivering 25 tonnes of food and basic necessities into the territory.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said his country would continue to allow the entry of humanitarian supplies “whichever path we choose”, and it was making progress on both fighting and negotiations.
“We will continue to fight, we will continue to act until we achieve all of our war goals – until complete victory,” he said.
Foreign Secretary David Lammy said the temporary pause in fighting “is essential but long overdue”.
He added: “This announcement alone cannot alleviate the needs of those desperately suffering in Gaza. We need a ceasefire that can end the war, for hostages to be released and aid to enter Gaza by land unhindered.
“Whilst airdrops will help to alleviate the worst of the suffering, land routes serve as the only viable and sustainable means of providing aid into Gaza. These measures must be fully implemented and further barriers on aid removed. The world is watching.”
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Israel cut off all supplies to Gaza from the start of March. It then reopened aid centres with new restrictions in May, but said the supply had to be controlled to prevent it from being stolen by Hamas militants.
On Saturday, reports referencing US government data said there was no evidence Hamas had stolen aid from UN agencies.
The IDF’s international spokesperson, Lieutenant Colonel Nadav Shoshani, described such reports as “fake news” and said Hamas thefts have been “well documented”.
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It comes as the Hamas-run health ministry in Gaza said as of Sunday, 133 people have died from malnutrition-related causes, including 87 children.
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Baby Zainab starved to death in Gaza
They include a five-month-old girl who weighed less than when she was born, with a doctor at Nasser Hospital describing it as a case of “severe, severe starvation”.
Zainab abu Habib was brought into the paediatric department at the hospital on Friday, already dead.
She weighed more than 3kg at birth, her mother Esraa abu Habib said, but her weight was less than 2kg at the end.
Health workers have also been weakened by hunger, with some putting themselves on IV drips so they can keep treating badly malnourished patients.
On Friday, Israel said it would allow foreign countries to airdrop aid into Gaza – but the UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) has warned this will not reverse “deepening starvation”.
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Aid waiting to be distributed in Gaza
UNRWA head Philippe Lazzarini described the method as “expensive” and “inefficient”, adding: “It is a distraction and screensmoke. A manmade hunger can only be addressed by political will.
“Lift the siege, open the gates and guarantee safe movements and dignified access to people in need.”
UNRWA has the equivalent of 6,000 trucks in Jordan and Egypt waiting for permission to enter Gaza, he added.
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MSF, also known as Doctors Without Borders, warned on Friday that 25% of young children and pregnant women in Gaza are now malnourished, and said the lack of food and water on the ground was “unconscionable”.
The UN also estimates Israeli forces have killed more than 1,000 people seeking food, the majority near the militarised distribution sites of the US-backed aid distribution scheme run by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation.
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In a statement on Friday, the IDF had said it “categorically rejects the claims of intentional harm to civilians”, and reports of incidents at aid distribution sites were “under examination”.
The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) has also previously disputed that these deaths were connected with its organisation’s operations, with director Johnnie Moore telling Sky News: “We just want to feed Gazans. That’s the only thing that we want to do.”
