The UN labels the week-long blockade as a “drop in the ocean.”

The UN calls Israel’s decision to allow aid into Gaza after an 11-week blockade a “drop in the ocean.”.

50 minutes prior.

Gritten, David.

the BBC News.

After an 11-week blockade, Israel claims to have permitted five UN trucks delivering humanitarian supplies, including baby food, into the Gaza Strip.

While applauding the action, the UN humanitarian chief emphasized that it was only “a drop in the ocean of what is urgently needed” by the 21.1 million Palestinians living in the war-torn region, where international experts are warning of impending famine.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu claimed that pressure from supporters in the US Senate led him to temporarily allow in a “minimal” amount of food.

He responded to criticism of the action in Israel with a video, emphasizing, “From a practical and diplomatic standpoint, we must not reach a situation of famine.”.

According to Netanyahu, food deliveries would stop until the Israeli military and private businesses established distribution centers in accordance with a US-supported plan that the UN rejected.

Additionally, he announced that Israeli forces would “take control of all areas” of Gaza as part of the Israeli military’s broader ground offensive against Hamas, which started on Sunday.

Hospitals and first responders report that at least 40 people were killed by Israeli airstrikes on Monday throughout the territory.

Five people were reportedly killed in one strike at a school in the central Gazan Nuseirat refugee camp that serves as a shelter for displaced families.

The Israeli military claimed to have hit “Hamas terrorists” who were operating inside a nearby command and control facility.

Fearing an “unprecedented attack” was imminent, it also ordered the evacuation of Khan Younis, a city in the south, and its eastern suburbs.

A two-month ceasefire with Hamas came to an end on March 2 when Israel halted all commercial and humanitarian supplies from reaching Gaza and launched a military offensive two weeks later.

Putting pressure on the armed group to free the hostages still in Gaza was the stated goal of the actions.

More than 3,000 people have reportedly been killed and 400,000 displaced by the Israeli ground operation and bombardment that has resumed, while the UN claims that the blockade has resulted in acute shortages of fuel, food, and medicine.

The UN-backed Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) published an assessment last week that warned half a million people faced starvation, and the Hamas-run health ministry said 57 children had died from the effects of malnutrition over the previous 11 weeks.

According to the United Nations, Israel is required by international humanitarian law to provide food and medical supplies to the people of Gaza. Thousands of truckloads of aid entered Gaza during the ceasefire, according to Israeli officials, so there was no shortage. Their accusation of supply theft was refuted by Hamas.

The Israeli prime minister’s office, however, declared on Sunday night that it would “permit a basic quantity of food to be brought in for the population in order to make certain that no starvation crisis develops in the Gaza Strip” in response to mounting pressure from Israel’s allies.

The sudden policy shift drew immediate criticism from right-wing Israeli politicians and activists. Itamar Ben-Gvir, the far-right National Security Minister, described it as “a grave mistake” that would “fuel Hamas and give it oxygen while our hostages languish in tunnels.”.

In a video released on social media on Monday in response to the criticism, Netanyahu gave an explanation for the decision to allow some food in without citing humanitarian concerns.

Since the start of the conflict, he stated, “We have stated that, from a practical and diplomatic perspective, we must avoid a situation of famine in order to achieve victory—to defeat Hamas and free all of our hostages, two interconnected missions.”.

He claimed that because of Hamas looting, he had stopped aid deliveries through the UN and other humanitarian organizations. He was now using a “different method” that involved the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, a US-backed non-governmental organization, distributing aid from hubs guarded by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) and security contractors.

He did, however, warn that a “red line” was now drawing near and that “our best friends in the world, [US] senators whom I know as passionate supporters of Israel” had expressed concerns.

They approach me and tell me, ‘We’re providing you with every possible support to win. However, we are unable to accept one thing. We are unable to handle pictures of famine. “,”.

Therefore, we must find a solution to this issue in order to win. In order to prevent hunger, we must provide a simple, basic bridge until we set up those distribution points and construct a sterile area under IDF control for the distribution of food and medicine,” he continued.

Another far-right figure, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, urged the Israeli public to look at the wider picture in an attempt to normalize the decision.

The goal of the military offensive, according to Smotrich, who supports the construction of new Israeli settlements in Gaza, is to drive Palestinians south of the region “and from there, with God’s help, to third countries,” thereby displacing them permanently.

Mark Carney, Emmanuel Macron, and Sir Keir Starmer, the leaders of the United Kingdom, France, and Canada, said Monday that the decision to permit a basic amount of food to enter Gaza was “wholly inadequate.”.

“If Israel does not stop the renewed military offensive and remove its restrictions on humanitarian aid, we will take further concrete actions in response,” they said in a joint statement. “.

Five UN trucks carrying humanitarian supplies, including baby food, entered Gaza through the Kerem Shalom crossing on Monday night, according to Israeli military organization Cogat, “following the recommendation of professional IDF officials and in accordance with the directive of the political echelon.”.

The UN’s humanitarian chief, Tom Fletcher, said that nine of its trucks had been given permission to enter through the Kerem Shalom crossing and that it was a “welcome development” that Israeli authorities had permitted it to resume delivering limited aid.

“But it is a drop in the ocean of what is urgently needed, and beginning tomorrow morning, significantly more aid must be allowed into Gaza,” he cautioned.

He added that he was “determined that our aid reach those in greatest need, and that the risk of theft by Hamas or other armed groups is minimized” and that Israel had assured the UN that its work would be facilitated through existing mechanisms.

According to the AFP news agency, UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric stated that none of the aid had been picked up at the designated area inside Gaza because it was “already dark” and “security concerns, we cannot operate in those conditions.”.

According to Eden Bar Tal, the director general of Israel’s foreign ministry, “Israel will facilitate the entry of dozens of aid trucks in the coming days.”.

Meanwhile, the head of the US-based charity World Central Kitchen questioned a senior Israeli official’s assertion that the aid plan being mentioned by Netanyahu would be finished in roughly a week.

This is untrue. Chef José Andrés wrote on X, “Will take weeks.”. “Palestinians will go hungry under this plan. We already have a system in place to feed all Palestinians with the assistance of Palestinians, so the new members of the humanitarian foundation should feel ashamed of themselves. “..”.

In addition to what Fletcher called a “clear, principled and practical plan to save lives at scale” and curb looting, the United Nations and other aid organizations have stated that they have roughly 8,900 truckloads of humanitarian aid already in position and prepared to enter Gaza.

Additionally, they have declared that they will not cooperate with the Israeli-US plan to disperse aid from hubs primarily located in the southern part of Gaza, claiming that it goes against their core humanitarian values of independence, neutrality, and impartiality.

They have warned that it will essentially exclude people with mobility issues, such as the elderly and those with disabilities, force more displacement, put thousands of people in danger, make aid contingent on political and military goals, and create an unacceptable precedent for aid delivery globally.

According to a displaced Palestinian man, “significant rationing” is currently allowing him and his wife and two children, ages two and nine, to eat one meal per day in the coastal al-Mawasi neighborhood west of Khan Younis.

“The lack of food, medicine, and hygiene products and their high cost, if they are available, have made it very difficult, if not impossible, to obtain them,” Abd al-Fatah Hussein told the BBC in a message.

Meanwhile, Mohammed Abu Rijleh reported that Shabab Gaza (Gaza Youth), his charity, was only able to provide about 2,500 meals on Monday, which is significantly less than what they typically do.

Over the phone, he told the BBC that he had to pay exorbitant prices for the ingredients he needed to cook because it had been difficult to find them.

Netanyahu added that Israeli troops were making headway in “massive fighting” in Gaza.

“We are going to take control of all areas of the Strip, that’s what we’re going to do,” he declared.

He claimed that defeating Hamas was the “main objective” of the enlarged offensive, which would result in the release of the 58 hostages that were still held, up to 23 of whom are thought to be alive.

Five divisions were engaged in an operation that would involve “dividing the territory and distancing the population for its safety,” according to IDF spokesman Brig Gen Effie Defrin on Sunday. “The return of our hostages is the only thing that can stop us,” he continued.

Both Israel and Hamas claim that a fresh round of indirect negotiations on a ceasefire and hostage release agreement has failed to produce any results while negotiators are still in Qatar.

Following a cross-border attack by Hamas on October 7, 2023, Israel launched a military campaign in Gaza, killing approximately 1,200 people and taking 251 hostage.

Since then, the territory’s health ministry reports that at least 53,475 people have died in Gaza, including 3,340 since the Israeli offensive resumed.