Israel’s ground offensive in the Gaza Strip is leaving hundreds of thousands of Palestinian civilians with few safe havens. In Rafah on the border with Egypt, so many people sought shelter from the fighting that the city no longer has food, electricity or sufficient drinking water for them, a British BBC reporter reported on Friday evening. In view of growing criticism over stagnant aid deliveries to Gaza and pressure from the US, Israel has now agreed to set up a second checkpoint for trucks carrying aid at the Kerem Shalom border crossing.
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Hope for a second border crossing
Israel will begin this in the coming days, the Times of Israel reported, citing a senior government official. This should make it easier to import a larger number of trucks, the report said, citing the responsible Israeli Cogat authority. Kerem Shalom is much closer to Rafah than the smaller Nitzana border crossing, where Israel has until now inspected the contents of aid shipments before sending them to Rafah. Since the start of the war, deliveries have been made exclusively via Rafah.
As the Palestinian Red Crescent announced on X, 69 trucks carrying aid entered the Gaza Strip via Rafah on Thursday. The trucks were loaded with essential supplies. Before the war, 500 trucks entered the area every day. Aid groups complain that the transport of trucks carrying aid to Nitzana and back has led to further delays in supplies to civilians, something Israel denies.
Israel fears that weapons could be transported to Gaza in the trucks and is therefore inspecting them. If the US has its way, Israel would have to fully reopen the Kerem Shalom crossing for the import and export of aid shipments, as the Times of Israel further reported. UN Emergency Aid Coordinator Martin Griffiths sees opportunities for this, he said in Geneva on Thursday. The UN Emergency Relief Office (OCHA) is still waiting for the green light, but is now planning convoys from Jordan with relief supplies that will travel via Kerem Shalom.
Kerem Shalom was the crossing through which most aid flowed into Gaza before the terrorist attack on Israel by Islamist Hamas and other groups on October 7. Using Kerem Shalom makes providing care to those in need a little easier, Griffith said. But only an end to Israeli attacks and a ceasefire can guarantee the necessary aid for the people.
The US sends another warning to Israel
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken again called on Israel to do more to protect civilians in the coastal strip. Israel’s leadership has taken important additional steps in this direction, Blinken said on Thursday (local time). However, there is still a gap between what he suggested during his recent visit to Tel Aviv and the results that can be observed.
For example, it is not just about setting up safety zones, but also about communicating them in such a way that people actually know where, when and how they can escape. In addition, there must be food, water and medicine for the refugees in such safety zones. In the Gaza Strip there was “unimaginable loss, destruction and misery,” wrote Cindy McCain, head of the World Food Program, about X. Everyone is hungry.
Israel: Hamas fires from security zones
The Israeli military, meanwhile, said Hamas had fired rockets into Israel from such “humanitarian security zones.” Meanwhile, Israeli media published images on Thursday of dozens of Palestinians in their underwear being arrested in the Gaza Strip. The identities of the men were initially unclear. Israeli military spokesman Daniel Hagari said the northern coastal strip’s Jabalia and Shejaiya districts “are strongholds of terrorists and we are fighting them.”
Anyone remaining in these areas, emerging from tunnel shafts or buildings, is being investigated to clarify “who has connections to Hamas and who does not.” Everyone is arrested and interrogated, Hagari explains. Meanwhile, house-to-house fighting continues in the southern town of Khan Yunis, considered a Hamas stronghold.
The number of Palestinians killed in the Israeli-locked coastal area has now risen to 17,177 since the start of the war, the Hamas-controlled health authority said. This number cannot currently be verified, but the UN and other observers note that the authority’s figures have generally proven credible in the past.
The US imposes sanctions against Houthi attacks
Meanwhile, the US government has imposed sanctions in response to attacks on merchant ships in the Red Sea by Iran-backed Houthi rebels. These targeted 13 people and institutions that the US accuses of providing the Houthis with money from the sale and shipment of Iranian goods, the US State Department announced on Thursday (local time).
What will be important on Friday?
At the insistence of UN Secretary General António Guterres, the UN Security Council wants to re-examine the situation in the Gaza Strip. The meeting is scheduled for 4:00 PM CET. The United Arab Emirates presented a new draft resolution calling for a ceasefire. However, similar initiatives have so far failed due to resistance from the US. (sda/dpa)
Soource :Watson
I am Amelia James, a passionate journalist with a deep-rooted interest in current affairs. I have more than five years of experience in the media industry, working both as an author and editor for 24 Instant News. My main focus lies in international news, particularly regional conflicts and political issues around the world.
