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First Post
3 days ago
- Politics
- First Post
Israel announces Gaza aid airdrops, corridors amid international pressure after starvation crisis
Israel announced aid airdrops and UN corridors in Gaza amid growing famine fears and global pressure. The move follows reports of over 50 Palestinians killed while trying to reach food. read more Palestinians gather as they carry aid supplies that entered Gaza through Israel, amid a hunger crisis, in Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip, July 20, 2025. File Image/Reuters Israel's military announced that airdrops of humanitarian aid over Gaza would begin Saturday night, along with new corridors for United Nations convoys, following growing reports of starvation-related deaths in the territory. The announcement came after months of warnings from experts about famine conditions due to Israeli restrictions on aid access. In a statement released late Saturday, the Israeli military said it would also implement 'humanitarian pauses' in densely populated areas, but stressed that combat operations against Hamas would continue. Israel's foreign ministry added that the pauses would begin Sunday in 'civilian centres' alongside the aid corridors. However, the military maintained there is 'no starvation' in Gaza, where over two million people—mostly displaced—are heavily dependent on aid to survive. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD The exact locations for the planned airdrops and humanitarian corridors were not specified. The military said the effort would be coordinated with international aid organizations. The newly formed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), backed by Israel, may also play a role. GHF chair Johnnie Moore said the group is ready to assist. The move follows intensifying global criticism—including from Israel's allies—after hundreds of Palestinians were killed in recent weeks while attempting to access food. Witness accounts from Gaza paint a grim picture: health workers too weak from hunger to function, children dying from malnutrition, and people risking their lives under fire in desperate attempts to reach food aid. On Saturday, at least 53 Palestinians were killed by Israeli strikes and gunfire, many of them while seeking aid, according to Gaza's health officials and ambulance services. In two incidents near the Zikim crossing in northern Gaza, Israeli forces opened fire on crowds waiting for aid trucks. At least a dozen were killed in one of the incidents, according to staff at Gaza's Shifa hospital. The military claimed it fired warning shots in response to an 'immediate threat.' A witness, Sherif Abu Aisha, described how people mistook an incoming light for aid trucks, only to discover it was Israeli tanks. 'We went because there is no food … and nothing was distributed,' he said, adding that his uncle was among the dead. Later that evening, Israeli troops reportedly fired at another crowd gathered around a U.N. aid convoy, killing at least 11 and injuring 120, according to Dr. Mohamed Abu Selmiyah, director of Shifa hospital. The death toll was expected to rise. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD AP footage from the scene showed men carrying a body and sacks of flour. 'You die to fetch some food for your children,' said one man, Fayez Abu Riyala, visibly exhausted and sweating. In southern Gaza's Khan Younis, Israeli forces reportedly shot and killed nine people trying to access aid via the Morag corridor. There was no immediate military comment. Elsewhere, Israeli airstrikes killed four people in a Gaza City apartment and eight—including four children—in a tent camp in Muwasi, according to hospitals. The aid airdrops were requested by Jordan and are expected to include food and baby formula. The UAE said its airdrops would begin 'immediately,' while the UK announced plans to support airdrops and evacuate children needing medical care. However, UNRWA chief Philippe Lazzarini warned that airdrops are 'expensive, inefficient, and can even kill starving civilians,' and will not address the root of the starvation crisis or prevent aid from being diverted. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD While the Israeli army claims it is not limiting the number of trucks entering Gaza, the UN says military restrictions and lawlessness on the ground are hampering delivery. Hamas police, once responsible for securing aid convoys, have been largely wiped out by airstrikes. According to Israel, more than 250 aid trucks entered Gaza this week. That's far below the approximately 600 trucks that crossed daily during a ceasefire that ended in March. International pressure on Israel continues to build. Over 25 Western-aligned nations and more than 100 aid and human rights groups have called for an end to the war, criticizing the blockade and Israel's new aid delivery model. The UN human rights office says more than 1,000 Palestinians have been killed while trying to reach aid since May—many near the newly established GHF distribution sites. Even aid workers are struggling to secure food. Inside Gaza, malnourished children with no prior health issues have started dying from hunger. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD 'All we want is enough food to stop starving,' said Wael Shaaban at a charity kitchen in Gaza City, where he was trying to feed his family of six. Meanwhile, an activist boat named Handala attempting to deliver aid to Gaza livestreamed video of Israeli forces boarding it around midnight. Israeli authorities have not commented on the incident.
The Hindu
3 days ago
- Health
- The Hindu
Israel's military says airdrops of aid will begin in Gaza as hunger grows
Israel's military announced that airdrops of aid would begin Saturday (July 26, 2025) night in Gaza, and humanitarian corridors will be established for United Nations convoys, after increasing accounts of starvation-related deaths. The statement late Saturday followed months of experts' warnings of famine amid Israeli restrictions on aid. International criticism, including by close allies, has grown as several hundred Palestinians have been killed in recent weeks while trying to reach food distribution sites. The military statement did not say where the airdrops or humanitarian corridors would be. It also said the military is prepared to implement humanitarian pauses in densely populated areas. Israel's foreign ministry said late Saturday the humanitarian pauses would start Sunday in 'civilian centres' along with humanitarian corridors. The military 'emphasizes that combat operations have not ceased' in Gaza against Hamas, and it asserted there is 'no starvation' in the territory, where most of the population of over 2 million has been displaced into a shrinking area with little infrastructure. The majority of people rely on aid. Witness accounts from Gaza have been grim. Some health workers are so weakened by hunger that they put themselves on IV drips to keep treating the badly malnourished. Parents have shown their limp and emaciated children. Wounded men have described desperate dashes for aid under gunfire. The military statement said airdrops would be conducted in coordination with international aid organizations. It was not clear where they would be carried out. And it wasn't clear what role the recently created and Israeli-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation — meant as an alternate to the U.N. aid system — might play. GHF chair Johnnie Moore in a statement said the group stood ready to assist. Israeli airstrikes and gunshots killed at least 53 people in Gaza overnight and into Saturday, most of them shot dead while seeking aid, according to Palestinian health officials and the local ambulance service. Deadly Israeli gunfire was reported twice close to the Zikim crossing with Israel in the north. In the first incident, at least a dozen people waiting for aid trucks were killed, said staff at Shifa hospital, where bodies were taken. Israel's military said it fired warning shots to distance a crowd 'in response to an immediate threat." A witness, Sherif Abu Aisha, said people started running when they saw a light that they thought was from aid trucks, but as they got close, they realized it was Israel's tanks. That's when the army started firing, he told The Associated Press. He said his uncle was among those killed. 'We went because there is no food ... and nothing was distributed,' he said. On Saturday evening, Israeli forces killed at least 11 people and wounded 120 others when they fired toward crowds who tried to get food from an entering U.N. convoy, Dr. Mohamed Abu Selmiyah, director of Shifa hospital, told the AP. 'We are expecting the numbers to surge in the next few hours,' he said. There was no immediate military comment. AP video showed a group of weary Palestinian men carrying a body along with sacks of flour. They said he was hit by a truck but had no details. 'You die to fetch some food for your children,' said one man, Fayez Abu Riyala, thin and sweating. In the southern city of Khan Younis, Israeli forces shot dead at least nine people trying to get aid entering through the Morag corridor, according to the hospital's morgue records. There was no immediate military comment. Elsewhere, those killed in strikes included four people in an apartment building in Gaza City and at least eight, including four children, in the crowded tent camp of Muwasi in Khan Younis, hospitals said. The airdrops were requested by neighboring Jordan, and a Jordanian official said they mainly will drop food and milk formula. The United Arab Emirates said airdrops would start 'immediately.' Britain said it plans to work with partners to airdrop aid and evacuate children requiring medical assistance. But the head of the United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees, Philippe Lazzarini, warned that airdrops are 'expensive, inefficient and can even kill starving civilians' and won't reverse the increasing starvation or prevent aid diversion. While Israel's army has said it allows aid into the enclave with no limit on the trucks that can enter, the U.N. says it is hampered by military restrictions on its movements and criminal looting. The Hamas-run police had provided security for aid delivery, but it has been unable to operate after being targeted by airstrikes. Israel on Saturday said over 250 trucks carrying aid from the U.N. and other organizations entered Gaza this week. About 600 trucks entered per day during the latest ceasefire that Israel ended in March. Israel faces growing international pressure. More than two dozen Western-aligned countries and over 100 charity and human rights groups have called for an end to the war, harshly criticizing Israel's blockade and a new aid delivery model it has rolled out. More than 1,000 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces since May while trying to get food, mostly near the new aid sites run by the GHF, an American contractor, the U.N. human rights office says. The charities and rights groups said their own staff struggled to get enough food. Inside Gaza, children with no preexisting conditions have begun to starve to death. 'We only want enough food to end our hunger,' said Wael Shaaban at a charity kitchen in Gaza City as he tried to feed his family of six. Meanwhile, an activist boat trying to reach Gaza with aid, the Handala, livestreamed video showing Israeli forces boarding around midnight. There was no immediate Israeli comment. (AP) NSD NSD
Newsweek
3 days ago
- Politics
- Newsweek
Israel Kills Over a Dozen Seeking Food Aid in Gaza as Famine Fears Grow
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. Israeli fire killed at least a dozen people in the past 24 hours as they sought food aid in Gaza, the Associated Press reported. The report comes amid a deepening starvation crisis in Gaza and less than a week after the killing of more than 85 Palestinians by Israeli forces at a food aid checkpoint. Newsweek has reached out to the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) for comment via email and WhatsApp on Saturday. Why It Matters Humanitarian aid groups have warned for months that Gaza is nearing famine. Israel, which controls the entry of aid into the enclave, has severely restricted access—tightening constraints even further since the collapse of the last ceasefire in March. From March to mid-May, no aid was allowed into Gaza. In addition to limited supplies, the distribution of aid has turned deadly, with human rights groups criticizing the U.S. and Israeli-backed Gaza Humanitarian Fund's (GHF) approach, which has forced Palestinians into fenced mazes and exposed aid seekers to Israeli fire. The United Nations estimates that Israel has killed more than 1,000 Palestinians trying to get food since May. Reports and images of starving Gazans comes as the Trump administration cut short ceasefire negotiations on Thursday, stating Hamas "shows a lack of desire" to reach a truce with Israel. Israel has repeatedly said that aid deliveries must be delivered in a "safe framework" that does not give supplies to Hamas, and notes that GHF is bringing food into Gaza. Israel has used aid restrictions as a pressure tactic to bring Hamas, a Palestinian militant group, to negotiate the release of hostages that were taken in its October 7, 2023, attack on Israel. What To Know Overnight Friday and into Saturday, Israeli airstrikes and gunfire killed at least 42 people, the AP reported. Dozens were shot at waiting for aid trucks near the Zikim crossing, in northern Gaza. Israel's military said it fired warning shots to distance a crowd "in response to an immediate threat" and it was not aware of any casualties. On July 20, Israel shot at crowds of food seekers in the same area, killing 85. One witness, Sherif Abu Aisha, told the AP on Saturday that people started to run when they saw a light they assumed was an aid truck, but as they approached they discovered it was an Israeli tank. The tank then began firing on the people, killing some. Recent reports and images of emaciated children and adults in Gaza come as hunger-related deaths continue to rise. The Gaza Health Ministry, which is run by Hamas, said at least 127 people, including 85 children, have died from starvation. The ministry reported that six died over the past 24 hours, among them a 5-month-old baby. "Severe acute malnutrition is surging and almost a third of families miss meals for days at a time," the U.N. World Food Programme warned. One in five children in Gaza City is malnourished, Philippe Lazzarini, commissioner general for the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees (UNRWA), noted. Human rights, aid and medical organizations warn that malnutrition weakens the immune system, increasing the risk of disease and potentially leading to death—especially among children and vulnerable populations. Israel has repeatedly rejected claims of forced starvation in Gaza. In May, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu denied people are starving in Gaza, saying that Israel takes "thousands of prisoners" from Gaza and photograph them, and you "don't see one, not one, emaciated." Palestinians carry sacks of flour unloaded from a humanitarian aid convoy that reached Gaza City from the northern Gaza Strip on July 26. Palestinians carry sacks of flour unloaded from a humanitarian aid convoy that reached Gaza City from the northern Gaza Strip on July 26. AP Photo/Jehad Alshrafi What People Are Saying Edouard Beigbeder, UNICEF regional director for the Middle East and North Africa, said in a Thursday statement: "Severe malnutrition is spreading among children faster than aid can reach them, and the world is watching it happen ... Children must be protected - not killed, and not left to starve." Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu wrote in an X, formerly Twitter, post Friday: "Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff got it right. Hamas is the obstacle to a hostage release deal. Together with our U.S. allies, we are now considering alternative options to bring our hostages home, end Hamas's terror rule, and secure lasting peace for Israel and our region." Philippe Lazzarini, UNRWA commissioner, wrote in a Friday X post: "One in every five children is malnourished in Gaza City as cases increase every day. When child malnutrition surges, coping mechanisms fail, access to food & care disappears, famine silently begins to unfold. Most children our teams are seeing are emaciated, weak and at high risk of dying if they don't get the treatment they urgently need. More than 100 people, the vast majority of them children, have reportedly died of hunger." Jeremy Konyndyk, president of Refugees International, told Vox in a Friday article: "When you have a population that is that stressed, whose health has deteriorated that much, or is [already] in such an advanced state of population-level food deprivation and malnutrition, then things can turn bad very rapidly, because there is nothing to stand in the way of starvation... In most famines, we see mortality coming from a mix of both outright starvation and opportunistic infections." He added: "Famines have a momentum, and the longer that they are allowed to deepen, the harder they are to reverse." Secretary General of the United Nations Antonio Guterres wrote in an X post on Friday: "Gaza is more than a humanitarian crisis – it is a moral crisis that challenges the global conscience. We will continue to speak out. But words don't feed hungry children. The @UN stands ready to make the most of a ceasefire to dramatically scale up humanitarian operations." Senator Bernie Sanders, a Vermont independent, wrote in a Friday X post: "The Netanyahu government's extermination of Gaza intensifies. Malnutrition is rampant, children are starving to death, people are shot while waiting for meager food rations — and US weapons allow it to happen. Trump and Congress must act NOW. Stop the slaughter. Feed the people." The AP, AFP, BBC, and Reuters all said in a joint statement this week: "We are desperately concerned for our journalists in Gaza, who are increasingly unable to feed themselves and their families. For many months, these independent journalists have been the world's eyes and ears on the ground in Gaza. They are now facing the same dire circumstances as those they are covering. Journalists endure many deprivations and hardships in warzones. We are deeply alarmed that the threat of starvation is now one of them." What Happens Next? France and Saudi Arabia are set to co-chair a previously postponed United Nations conference on the issue of a Palestinian state, humanitarian aid, and hostage release next week. International pressure for a ceasefire and expanded humanitarian aid in Gaza continues to mount. On Saturday, Israel's military announced aid airdrops including flour and canned foods will commence in Gaza. Humanitarian corridors for U.N. convoys will also be established, although it was not specified when and where.
Irish Examiner
3 days ago
- Health
- Irish Examiner
Israel's military says airdrops of aid will begin Saturday night in Gaza
Israel's military has announced that airdrops of aid will begin on Saturday night in Gaza, and humanitarian corridors will be established for UN convoys, after increasing accounts of starvation-related deaths. The statement late Saturday followed months of experts' warnings of famine. International criticism, including by close allies, has grown as several hundred Palestinians have been killed in recent weeks while trying to reach aid. The military's statement did not say when the humanitarian corridors for UN convoys would open, or where. It also said the military is prepared to implement humanitarian pauses in densely populated areas. International criticism about the situation in Gaza has been growing (Abdel Kareem Hana/AP) The statement added that the military 'emphasises that combat operations have not ceased' in Gaza against Hamas and it said there is 'no starvation' in the territory. Witness accounts from Gaza have been grim. Some health workers are so weakened by hunger that they put themselves on IV drips to keep treating the badly malnourished. Parents have shown their limp and emaciated children. The Israeli military statement said the airdrops would be conducted in co-ordination with international aid organisations. It was not immediately clear where they would be carried out and it was not clear what role the recently created and Israeli-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, meant as an alternative to the UN aid system, might play. Israeli airstrikes and gunshots killed at least 53 people in Gaza overnight and into Saturday, most of them shot dead while seeking aid, according to Palestinian health officials and the local ambulance service. Witness accounts from Gaza have been grim (Abdel Kareem Hana/AP) Deadly Israeli gunfire was reported twice within hours close to the Zikim crossing with Israel in the north. In the first incident, at least a dozen people waiting for aid trucks were killed, said staff at Shifa hospital, where bodies were taken. Israel's military said it fired warning shots to distance a crowd 'in response to an immediate threat' and it was not aware of any casualties. A witness, Sherif Abu Aisha, said people started running when they saw a light that they thought was from aid trucks, but as they got close, they realised it was Israel's tanks. That is when the army started firing, he told The Associated Press. He said his uncle was among those killed. 'We went because there is no food and nothing was distributed,' he said. On Saturday evening, Israeli forces killed at least 11 people and wounded 120 others when they fired toward crowds who tried to get food from an entering UN convoy, Dr Mohamed Abu Selmiyah, director of Shifa hospital, told the AP. Palestinians carry the bodies of people who were killed in an Israeli airstrike on a school in Gaza that has been used as a shelter (Abdel Kareem Hana/AP) 'We are expecting the numbers to surge in the next few hours,' he said. There was no immediate Israeli military comment. Elsewhere, those killed in strikes included four people in an apartment building in Gaza City, hospital staff and the ambulance service said. Another Israeli strike killed at least eight, including four children, in the crowded tent camp of Muwasi in the southern city of Khan Younis, according to the Nasser hospital. Also in Khan Younis, Israeli forces opened fire and killed at least nine people trying to get aid entering Gaza through the Morag corridor, according to the hospital's morgue records. There was no immediate comment from Israel's military. Ceasefire talks between Israel and Hamas were at a standstill after the US and Israel recalled negotiating teams on Thursday. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Friday his government was considering 'alternative options' to ceasefire talks. A Hamas official, however, said negotiations were expected to resume next week and called the recall of the delegations a pressure tactic. Egypt and Qatar, which mediate alongside the United States, called the pause temporary and said talks would resume. They did not say when.
Boston Globe
3 days ago
- Health
- Boston Globe
Israel's military says airdrops of aid will begin Saturday night in Gaza
The statement added that the military 'emphasizes that combat operations have not ceased' in Gaza against Hamas. And it asserts there is 'no starvation' in the territory. Advertisement Israeli airstrikes and gunshots killed at least 53 people in Gaza overnight and into Saturday, most of them shot dead while seeking aid, according to Palestinian health officials and the local ambulance service, as starvation deaths continued. Deadly Israeli gunfire was reported twice within hours close to the Zikim crossing with Israel in the north. In the first incident, at least a dozen people waiting for aid trucks were killed, said staff at Shifa hospital, where bodies were taken. Israel's military said it fired warning shots to distance a crowd 'in response to an immediate threat' and it was not aware of any casualties. A witness, Sherif Abu Aisha, said people started running when they saw a light that they thought was from aid trucks, but as they got close, they realized it was Israel's tanks. That's when the army started firing, he told The Associated Press. He said his uncle was among those killed. Advertisement 'We went because there is no food ... and nothing was distributed,' he said. On Saturday evening, Israeli forces killed at least 11 people and wounded 120 others when they fired toward crowds who tried to get food from an entering U.N. convoy, Dr. Mohamed Abu Selmiyah, director of Shifa hospital, told the AP. 'We are expecting the numbers to surge in the next few hours,' he said. There was no immediate Israeli military comment. Elsewhere, those killed in strikes included four people in an apartment building in Gaza City, hospital staff and the ambulance service said. Another Israeli strike killed at least eight, including four children, in the crowded tent camp of Muwasi in the southern city of Khan Younis, according to the Nasser hospital. Also in Khan Younis, Israeli forces opened fire and killed at least nine people trying to get aid entering Gaza through the Morag corridor, according to the hospital's morgue records. There was no immediate comment from Israel's military. Stalled ceasefire talks Ceasefire talks between Israel and Hamas were at a standstill after the U.S. and Israel recalled negotiating teams on Thursday. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Friday his government was considering 'alternative options' to ceasefire talks. A Hamas official, however, said negotiations were expected to resume next week and called the recall of the delegations a pressure tactic. Egypt and Qatar, which mediate alongside the United States, called the pause temporary and said talks would resume. They did not say when. 'Our loved ones do not have time for another round of negotiations, and they will not survive another partial deal,' said Zahiro Shahar Mor, nephew of hostage Avraham Munder, one of 50 still in Gaza from Hamas' attack on Oct. 7, 2023, that sparked the war. Mor spoke at a weekly rally in Tel Aviv. Advertisement Children starving to death The U.N. and experts say Palestinians in Gaza are at risk of famine. And now children with no preexisting conditions have begun to starve to death. 'We only want enough food to end our hunger,' said Wael Shaaban at a charity kitchen in Gaza City as he tried to feed his family of six. While Israel's army says it's allowing aid into the enclave with no limit on the trucks that can enter, the U.N. says it is hampered by military restrictions on its movements and criminal looting. The Hamas-run police had provided security for aid delivery, but it has been unable to operate after being targeted by airstrikes. Israel on Saturday said over 250 trucks carrying aid from the U.N. and other organizations entered Gaza this week. About 600 trucks entered per day during the latest ceasefire that Israel ended in March. Saturday's Zikim shootings came days after at least 80 Palestinians were killed trying to reach aid entering through the crossing, one of the deadliest days for aid-seekers in 21 months of war. Israel faces growing international pressure. More than two dozen Western-aligned countries and over 100 charity and human rights groups have called for an end to the war, harshly criticizing Israel's blockade and a new aid delivery model it has rolled out. More than 1,000 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces since May while trying to get food, mostly near the new aid sites run by an American contractor, the U.N. human rights office says. Advertisement The charities and rights groups said their own staff struggled to get enough food. 'Stand for Gaza, for silence is a crime, and indifference is a betrayal of humanity,' said Father Issa Thaljieh, a Greek Orthodox priest at the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem, as religious figures and the mayor called for prayers to end the war. Turning to airdrops, with a warning For the first time in months, Israel said it is allowing airdrops, requested by neighboring Jordan. A Jordanian official said the airdrops mainly will be food and milk formula. The United Arab Emirates said airdrops would start 'immediately.' Britain plans to work with partners to airdrop aid and evacuate children requiring medical assistance, Prime Minister Keir Starmer's office said. But the head of the United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees, Philippe Lazzarini, warned that airdrops are 'expensive, inefficient and can even kill starving civilians' and won't reverse the increasing starvation or prevent aid diversion. More than 59,700 Palestinians have been killed during the war, according to Gaza's Health Ministry. Its count doesn't distinguish between militants and civilians, but the ministry says that more than half of the dead are women and children. The ministry operates under the Hamas government. The U.N. and other international organizations see it as the most reliable source of data on casualties. Magdy reported from Cairo.
