Israeli aerial bombardments claimed dozens more victims on Saturday in the Gaza Strip, according to the Hamas Ministry of Health, while a first ship loaded with aid is ready to embark from Cyprus for the Palestinian territory affected by famine .
After a little more than five months of war between Israel and the Palestinian Islamist movement, the humanitarian situation is becoming more catastrophic every day in the besieged Palestinian territory while the aid provided by land or air remains largely insufficient.
During a visit to Cyprus on Friday, the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, expressed hope for the opening on Sunday of a maritime corridor to transport aid from the Mediterranean island, located some 370 kilometers from Gaza.
An American humanitarian association, World Central Kitchen, said it was loading aid in Larnaca, southern Cyprus, on the ship Open Arms, owned by the Spanish humanitarian organization of the same name.
“Our ship is preparing to sail […] loaded with tons of food, water and vital supplies for Palestinian civilians,” Open Arms said on X.
However, no details were given on the exact location where this aid would be received, who would be responsible for distribution once in the Gaza Strip or would ensure its security, while looting has already taken place.
On Thursday, US President Joe Biden announced the construction of a “temporary pier” in Gaza.
1000 soldiers involved
The temporary port “could provide more than two million meals per day to the citizens of Gaza,” according to the Pentagon, which specifies that the construction of this structure would probably involve more than 1,000 soldiers and could take up to 60 days.
The United States is putting increasing pressure on Israel, their ally, which has besieged the Palestinian territory since October 9 and only lets in aid trucks from Egypt.
According to the UN, 2.2 of the 2.4 million inhabitants of this cramped territory hit by significant water and food shortages are threatened with famine, and 1.7 million have been displaced by fighting and violence. Israeli strikes which caused colossal destruction.
For the UN, which warns of an “almost inevitable widespread famine” in Gaza, airdrops, as well as sending aid by sea, cannot replace the land route.
The fall of packages dropped by planes from different countries on Gaza killed five people on Friday, according to a hospital source. It has not yet been possible to know which country carried out the deadly drop. The United States, Jordan, Belgium and the Netherlands said they were not involved in the incident.
Furthermore, Sweden and Canada announced on Saturday that they would resume funding for the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA), the main provider of aid in the Palestinian territory, more than a month after suspending it. like around fifteen countries.
The UN agency has been at the center of controversy since Israel accused twelve of its employees at the end of January of being involved in the bloody October 7 attack carried out by the Palestinian movement Hamas against Israel.
Children who died of malnutrition
According to the Hamas Ministry of Health, at least 23 civilians have died of malnutrition and dehydration in Gaza, after the deaths of three more children.
After more than five months of a devastating war triggered by the Hamas attack, Israeli strikes on Gaza have seen no respite: in the last 24 hours, at least 82 people have died, bringing the death toll in Gaza to 30,960. Gaza since the start of the conflict according to the authorities of the Islamist movement, according to the Hamas Ministry of Health.
The Hamas government’s media office reported more than 30 strikes overnight, including one against a residential building in the town of Rafah, where some 200 people had taken refuge.
Israeli operations in the Gaza Strip have left at least 30,960 dead in Gaza since the start of the war on October 7, according to authorities of the Islamist movement.
The Gaza Strip, already subject to an Israeli blockade since Hamas took power in 2007, is bordered by Israel, Egypt which keeps its border closed and the Mediterranean Sea.
The Hamas attack on October 7 resulted in the deaths of at least 1,160 people, most of them civilians, in southern Israel, according to an AFP count based on official sources.
Around 250 people were also kidnapped and taken to Gaza that day, and 130 hostages are still being held there, 31 of whom Israel says are dead.
In response, Israel has vowed to annihilate Hamas, which it considers a terrorist organization along with the United States and the European Union.
“No compromise”
To achieve “total victory”, Israel says it is preparing a ground offensive on Rafah, on the Egyptian border, where nearly 1.5 million Palestinians are massed according to the UN.
The Israeli army said on Saturday that it had carried out targeted raids on Friday in the Gaza Strip, and killed more than 20 fighters in the Khan Younes sector (south).
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Friday it was up to Hamas to agree to a truce with Israel, but the group’s military wing said it would make “no compromise” on its demands for peace. a definitive ceasefire and a withdrawal of Israeli troops from the Gaza Strip in exchange for any agreement on the release of the hostages.
Later in the day, President Biden said it would be “difficult” to achieve a ceasefire before the start of the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan (Monday or Tuesday), a goal that had been attempted ‘reach this week in Cairo the mediator countries (Egypt, Qatar and the United States) and Hamas.
The war in Gaza has shattered “all sense of shared humanity”, lamented the president of the International Committee of the Red Cross on Saturday, calling for a cessation of hostilities, the release of hostages and access to Palestinian detainees.