JERUSALEM — Israel will soon halt or slow humanitarian aid into parts of northern Gaza as it expands its military offensive against Hamas, an official said Saturday, a day after Gaza City was declared a combat zone.
The decision was likely to bring more international condemnation of Israel’s government as frustration grows in the country and abroad over the dire conditions for both Palestinians and remaining hostages in Gaza after nearly 23 months of war.
The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the media, told The Associated Press that Israel will stop airdrops over Gaza City in the coming days and reduce the number of aid trucks arriving in the territory’s north as it prepares to evacuate hundreds of thousands of people south.
Israel on Friday ended recently imposed daytime pauses in fighting to allow aid delivery, describing Gaza City as a Hamas stronghold and alleging that a tunnel network remains in use, despite previous large-scale raids on the area. The United Nations and partners have said the pauses, airdrops and other recent measures fell far short of the 600 trucks of aid needed daily in Gaza.
AP video footage overnight showed several large explosions across Gaza. In recent days, Israel’s military has increased strikes on the outskirts of Gaza City, where famine was recently documented and declared by global food security experts.
It was not clear when the pause or halt in aid deliveries would begin. By Saturday there had been no airdrops for several days across Gaza, a break from the almost daily drops over the past few weeks.
Israel’s army didn’t respond to a request for comment about the airdrops or say how it would provide aid to Palestinians during another major shift in Gaza’s population of over 2 million people.
Red Cross warns against Israel’s evacuation of Palestinians
“Such an evacuation would trigger a massive population movement that no area in the Gaza Strip can absorb, given the widespread destruction of civilian infrastructure and the extreme shortages of food, water, shelter and medical care,” Mirjana Spoljaric, president of the International Committee of the Red Cross, said in a statement Saturday.
It’s impossible that a mass evacuation of Gaza City can be done in a safe and dignified way, she said.
Hundreds of residents have begun leaving Gaza City, piling their few remaining possessions onto pickup trucks or donkey carts. Many have been forced to leave their homes more than once.
Also Saturday, Israeli gunfire killed four people trying to get aid in central Gaza, according to health officials at Al-Awda Hospital, were the bodies were taken. Gaza’s Health Ministry said 15 people were killed and at least 206 others wounded seeking aid over the past 24 hours.
The Health Ministry also said 10 people died as a result of starvation and malnutrition over the past 24 hours, including three children. It said at least 332 Palestinians have now died from malnutrition-related causes during the war, including 124 children.
At least 63,371 Palestinians have died in Gaza during the war, said the ministry, which does not say how many of the dead are fighters or civilians but says around half have been women and children. The ministry is part of the Hamas-run government and staffed by medical professionals. The U.N. and independent experts consider it the most reliable source on war casualties. Israel disputes its figures but has not provided its own.
