As Israel escalates attacks on Gaza City, global leaders demand urgent aid access amid rising civilian deaths and famine
As Israel escalates attacks on Gaza City, global leaders demand urgent aid access amid rising civilian deaths and famine
Gaza City Israeli forces have intensified aerial bombardments on Gaza City, hitting the residential neighborhoods of Zeitoun and Sabra for the third consecutive day, according to Gaza’s Hamas-run civil defense agency. The latest strikes come as Israel’s military prepares for a full ground occupation of the city moves that have drawn sharp international condemnation.
Spokesperson Mahmud Bassal described the scenes as “massive destruction to civilian homes,” with rescue efforts halted due to continuous drone and air attacks. “There are martyrs under the rubble that no one can reach,” said Zeitoun resident Majed al-Hosary, noting the relentless nature of the strikes.
In a rare joint statement, governments of the UK, European Union, Australia, Canada, and Japan warned that “famine is unfolding in front of our eyes” in Gaza. They called for “immediate, permanent and concrete steps” to allow unrestricted humanitarian aid into the enclave, citing catastrophic conditions and starvation-related deaths.
Israel denies that famine exists in Gaza and has instead accused United Nations agencies of failing to retrieve and distribute aid stockpiled at its borders. Despite promises to increase aid including via designated corridors and airdrops ground reports and the UN suggest the flow remains dangerously insufficient.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) echoed the alarm, with its representative Rik Peeperkorn saying, “We currently cannot stock hospitals. We need to be able to get all essential medicines and medical supplies in.”
Israel’s war cabinet on Monday voted to occupy Gaza City an action sharply criticised at an emergency session of the UN Security Council. On Tuesday, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) announced the beginning of “a new state of combat,” although no formal timeline for the ground incursion has been released.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stated that the military had been ordered to dismantle the “two remaining Hamas strongholds” in Gaza City and the southern region of al-Mawasi. Yet even as plans for ground operations unfold, civilians are facing intensifying aerial assaults, compounding a worsening humanitarian crisis.
According to Gaza’s health ministry, at least 100 bodies have been brought to hospitals in the last 24 hours alone 31 of them from areas near aid distribution points. Five additional deaths were attributed to malnutrition.
More than 61,500 Palestinians have been killed since the war began in October 2023, following Hamas’s attack on Israel that left 1,200 Israelis dead and 251 taken hostage. While Israel insists it is targeting militants, human rights organizations accuse the military of indiscriminate attacks on civilians.
In a powerful statement following a visit to the region, The Elders a group of former global leaders called the situation in Gaza an “unfolding genocide.” Helen Clark, former Prime Minister of New Zealand, and Mary Robinson, former Irish President, said they personally witnessed signs of “human-caused famine” and widespread devastation.
Their remarks echoed those of Israeli human rights group B’Tselem, which concluded that Israel is attempting to “destroy Palestinian society in the Gaza Strip.” Israel has categorically rejected these claims, maintaining that the responsibility lies with Hamas.
Adding to the outrage, five Al Jazeera journalists were killed on Sunday in what the IDF called a targeted strike against a “Hamas terrorist cell.” Among the dead was Anas al-Sharif, a senior correspondent. The military offered no evidence for its claims, nor did it address the deaths of the other journalists.
Al Jazeera and press freedom advocates called the attack an attempt to “silence coverage” of the war, while global leaders have demanded an independent investigation into what many are calling a blatant assault on press freedom.
With the humanitarian situation deteriorating rapidly, global pressure is mounting for Israel to halt its military offensive, allow unfettered aid access, and protect civilian lives before the crisis escalates even further.
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