Amid growing warnings of starvation, the Israeli military on May 19 allowed humanitarian aid into Gaza for the first time in more than 11 weeks. The nine trucks permitted to pass through the Kerem Shalom crossing came after the UK, France and Canada threatened to sanction Israel if it did not allow in assistance. UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs Tom Fletcher welcomed the move, but said it was a “drop in the ocean of what is urgently needed.” Earlier this year, during the two-month ceasefire that ended in March, nearly 600 trucks entered Gaza every day. (NewsHour, France24, CNN)
A further 90 trucks were allowed in the following day. The Israeli Defense Ministry’s Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT) said the aid delivery was permitted “following the recommendation of professional IDF officials and in accordance with the directive of the political echelon.” COGAT did not address allegations from the UN humanitarian affairs office, OCHA, that the Israeli troops prevented the timely distribution of aid on the Gaza side of the border with needless bureaucratic hurdles, such as off-loading and re-leaoding before delivery. (ToI, UN News)
In an open letter issued the same day the first nine trucks were allowed in, nearly a dozen international aid and human rights groups warned that a US-backed organization set up to take over aid distribution in Gaza is “a dangerous, politicized sham.” They charged that the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) has been launched without Palestinian involvement, while the population in Gaza remains under siege.
The statement noted that Tom Fletcher has dismissed creation of the GHF as “a cynical sideshow,” and added: “Aid does not need rebranding. It needs to be allowed in.” The groups called on governments and humanitarian agencies to reject the GHF model and demand access to the enclave for all aid providers, “not just those who cooperate with an occupying power.” The statement asserted: “The problem is not logistics. It is intentional starvation.” (MEE)
Israel has meanwhile ordered Gaza’s second-largest city of Khan Yunis evacuated as the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) launches Operation Gideon’s Chariots to seize “all of the Gaza Strip.” Over the past month, Israel has expanded what it calls a “buffer zone” along the Gaza border from hundreds of feet to more than a mile, and enlarged the corridor that bisects Gaza. Today, Israel controls about a third of the Strip and is pushing the population into shrinking pockets outside of direct IDF control. (NewsHour)
Israeli strikes on hospitals are mounting since hostilities resumed. On May 13, Israeli bombs struck the European Hospital in Khan Yunis, one of the last functioning in the Gaza Strip,killing 28 people and injuring dozens. The IDF said it was targeting a Hamas command center beneath the hospital, but did not provide any evidence of this. (BBC Verify, WHO)
Protests both sides of the line
Amid all this, more protests against Hamas have broken out in Khan Younis. Hundreds of Palestinians were seen in videos posted on social media calling for an end to the war and for the removal of Hamas from power in Gaza. Street demonstrations have now persisted for three days, with residents chanting “Out! Out! Out! All of Hamas, out!”
In an evident attempt to suppress news of the protests, Hamas circulated threats on journalists’ WhatsApp groups, warning them against publishing any “negative news that could affect the morale of the people.” (BBC News)
Anti-war protests within Israel are also again mounting. Israeli police and border guards arrested nine protesters May 18 during a hundreds-strong march along the Gaza border calling for a halt to Operation Gideon’s Chariots. During the march from the Sderot train station to the border with the Strip, some protesters attempted to block a road, leading to the arrests. Among the detained was Alon-Lee Green, co-director of the joint Jewish-Arab group Standing Together. An Israeli court the next day moved to extend the detention of seven of the nine, including Green, who are charged with obstructing police and participating in an illegal gathering.
The main slogan at the march was “Stop the horrors in Gaza,” but more Israeli protesters are now calling Israel’s actions in Gaza “genocide.” (ToI, ToI, Haaretz)
See our last report on genocide accusations against Israel.
