Aid must be secured and brought in officially, Palestinian authorities say
A large number of aid seekers have been killed as a result of direct targeting by Israel, he said, adding that the current method of delivering aid is not practical.
Since May, Israeli forces have killed more than 1,330 Palestinian aid seekers and over 8,818 others have been wounded, mainly at the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation distribution sites run by the US and Israel.
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Gulf Today
24 minutes ago
- Gulf Today
Foreign NGOs say new Israeli rules keep them from delivering Gaza aid
New Israeli legislation regulating foreign aid groups has been increasingly used to deny their requests to bring supplies into Gaza, according to a joint letter signed by more than 100 groups published Thursday. Ties between foreign-backed aid groups and the Israeli government have long been beset by tensions, with officials often complaining the organisations are biased. The rocky relations have only gotten more strained in the wake of Hamas's unprecedented attack on Israel in October 2023. The health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza says at least 235 people including 106 children have died of hunger since the war began in October 2023, with many of the cases recorded in recent weeks. "Israeli authorities have rejected requests from dozens of NGOs to bring in lifesaving goods, citing that these organisations are 'not authorised to deliver aid'," the joint statement reads. People stand in front of a warehouse for aid deliveries, waiting to be delivered to Gaza, at a logistics site run by the Egyptian Red Crescent, outside Arish, Egypt. Reuters According to the letter, whose signatories include Oxfam and Doctors Without Borders (MSF), at least 60 requests to bring aid into Gaza were rejected in July alone. In March, Israel's government approved a new set of rules for foreign non-governmental organisations (NGOs) working with Palestinians. The law updates the framework for how aid groups must register to maintain their status within Israel, along with provisions that outline how their applications can be denied or registration revoked. Registration can be rejected if Israeli authorities deem that a group denies the democratic character of Israel or "promotes delegitimisation campaigns" against the country. Radwan Radwan, father of displaced Palestinian boy Bader Radwan who shelters with his parents and five siblings in a destroyed clinic, helps his son unpack the contents of a food supplies package, which includes a bag of lentils, cooking oil, rice, flour, tahini (ground sesame seeds), and cans of meat, fava beans, hummus, white beans, and tomato sauce, after collecting it from aid trucks that entered Gaza through Israel, in Gaza City, on Wednesday. Reuters "Unfortunately, many aid organisations serve as a cover for hostile and sometimes violent activity," Israel's Diaspora Minister Amichai Chikli told the media. "Organisations that have no connection to hostile or violent activity and no ties to the boycott movement will be granted permission to operate," added Chikli, whose ministry directed an effort to produce the new guideline. Aid groups say, however, that the new rules are leaving Gazans without help. "Our mandate is to save lives, but due to the registration restrictions civilians are being left without the food, medicine and protection they urgently need," said Jolien Veldwijk, director of the charity CARE in the Palestinian territories. Veldwijk said that CARE has not been able to deliver any aid to Gaza since Israel imposed a full blockade on the Palestinian territory in March, despite partially easing it in May. Israel has long accused Hamas of stealing aid entering the Strip, and since May, the government has relied on the US-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation to manage food distribution centres. According to Gaza's civil defence agency, its operations have been frequently marred by chaos as thousands of Gazans have scrambled each day to approach its hubs, where some have been shot, including by Israeli soldiers. Agence France-Presse
Gulf Today
43 minutes ago
- Gulf Today
Israeli military says approved plan for new Gaza offensive
The Israeli military said on Wednesday that it had approved the framework for a new offensive in the Gaza Strip, as Hamas condemned what it called "aggressive" Israeli ground incursions in Gaza City. Israel's offensive has killed at least 61,722 Palestinians, according to figures from the health ministry in Gaza which the United Nations considers reliable. The approved plan for the expanded offensive comes days after Israel's security cabinet called for the capture of the Palestinian territory's largest city following 22 months of war that have created dire humanitarian conditions. Israeli armed forces chief Lieutenant General Eyal Zamir "approved the main framework for the IDF's operational plan in the Gaza Strip", a statement released by the army said. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government has not provided a precise timetable for when Israeli troops will enter Gaza City, where thousands have taken refuge after fleeing previous offensives. Ismail Al-Thawabta, director general of the Hamas government media office in Gaza, told the media on Wednesday that "the Israeli occupation forces continue to carry out aggressive incursions in Gaza City". Smoke rises from north Gaza, near the Israel-Gaza border, on Wednesday. Reuters "These assaults represent a dangerous escalation aimed at imposing a new reality on the ground by force, through a scorched-earth policy and the complete destruction of civilian property," he added. Sabah Fatoum, 51, who lives in a tent in the city's Tal al-Hawa neighbourhood told AFP by phone that "the explosions are massive" in the area. There are "many air strikes and tanks are advancing in the southern area of Tal al-Hawa with drones above our heads", she said. Abu Ahmed Abbas, 46, who lives in a tent in the Zeitoun neighbourhood, said that tanks had been advancing into the southeastern part of Zeitoun and southern Tal al-Hawa "for several days" and demolishing houses. "The air strikes are extremely intense, they have intensified, and sometimes there is artillery shelling since last Sunday," he said. 'Just escaped death' Gaza's civil defence agency also reported intensified Israeli air strikes on residential neighbourhoods of Gaza City in recent days. Agency spokesman Mahmud Bassal told the media that Israeli attacks had killed at least 75 people across the territory on Wednesday. AFP footage from Gaza City on Tuesday showed Palestinians fleeing Israeli strikes on the Zeitoun and Asqoola neighbourhoods using overloaded carts, vans and bikes. Israeli soldiers operate, near the border with Gaza, on Wednesday. Reuters "I didn't bring a mattress or anything, and we just escaped death and now we're running away and we don't know where to go," said displaced Palestinian Fidaa Saad. Israel's plans to expand its offensive into Gaza City come as diplomacy aimed at securing an elusive ceasefire and hostage release deal has been stalled for weeks, with the latest round of negotiations breaking down in July. Egypt said Tuesday it was still working with fellow Gaza mediators Qatar and the United States to broker a 60-day truce "with the release of some hostages and some Palestinian detainees, and the flow of humanitarian and medical assistance to Gaza without restrictions". Hamas said early on Wednesday that a senior delegation had arrived in Cairo for "preliminary talks" with Egyptian officials. Israel's plans to expand the fighting have sparked international outcry as well as domestic opposition. Reserve and retired pilots who served in the Israeli air force rallied on Tuesday in Tel Aviv to demand an end to the conflict. "This war and expansion will only cause the death of the hostages, death of more Israeli soldiers, and death of many more innocent Palestinians in Gaza," said Guy Poran, a former air force pilot. Dire conditions UN-backed experts have warned of widespread famine unfolding in the territory, where Israel has drastically curtailed the amount of humanitarian aid it allows in. The health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza says at least 235 people including 106 children have died of hunger since the war began in October 2023, with many of the cases recorded in recent weeks. Netanyahu on Tuesday revived calls to "allow" Palestinians to leave Gaza, telling Israeli broadcaster i24NEWS that "we are not pushing them out, but we are allowing them to leave". Past calls to resettle Gazans outside of the war-battered territory, including from US President Donald Trump, have sparked fears of displacement among Palestinians and condemnation from the international community. Hamas's October 2023 attack on Israel that triggered the war resulted in the deaths of 1,219 people, according to an AFP tally based on official figures. Of the 251 hostages taken during the attack, 49 are still held in Gaza, including 27 the Israeli military says are dead. Agence France-Presse
Middle East Eye
2 hours ago
- Middle East Eye
Extremist mindset steeped in colonial illusions, says Arab League on 'Greater Israel' statement
The General Secretariat of the Arab League has said that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's statements regarding the creation of "Greater Israel" are a violation of the sovereignty of Arab states and an attempt to undermine security and stability in the region. These statements constitute a serious threat to collective Arab security and a serious challenge to international law and the principles of international legitimacy, the General Secretariat said in a statement. Greater Israel refers to an area that includes the occupied Palestinian territory as well as parts of Egypt, Jordan, Syria, and Lebanon. Netanyahu, who is wanted by the International Criminal Court for crimes against humanity, during an interview said that he felt 'very much' connected to the vision of 'Greater Israel'. Responding to the statement, Arab League has said that Netanyahu's remarks reflect expansionist and aggressive intentions that cannot be accepted or tolerated, revealing an extremist mindset steeped in colonial illusions. The statement urged the international community, represented by the UN Security Council, to fulfil its responsibility and respond decisively to these extremist statements, which destabilise the region and fuel hatred.
