Israel has been imposing a total blockade on aid entering the Gaza Strip since March 2, raising fears of a return to violence, and of a rapid further deterioration in the dire humanitarian situation in the devastated enclave. The move is intended to pressure Hamas to accept a temporary extension of the first phase of the three-stage ceasefire deal that went into effect on Jan. 19, while giving the Palestinian group little in return. The second phase of the deal was supposed to see Israel and Hamas hammer out a plan for Gaza’s post-war governance. But Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has instead repeatedly expressed support for US President Trump’s widely condemned proposal to expel the 2.1 million Palestinian residents of Gaza and take control of the territory. Arab leaders meeting in Cairo on March 4 endorsed a $53 billion reconstruction and post-war governance plan as a counter-proposal to Trump’s vision, but it was immediately rejected by the US and Israel. Even before assistance was cut off, Palestinians in Gaza said the dramatic increase in aid entering the enclave during the first phase of the deal brought less relief than they had hoped.
From The New Humanitarian, March 6
Photo: Mohamed Soulaimane al-Astal/TNH
UNRWA demands humanitarian access to Gaza
UNRWA released a report March 9 on the human rights situation in the Palestinian territories from Feb. 26 to March 4, in which the agency demanded that Israel lift its Gaza blockade to allow essential humanitarian access in compliance with its international humanitarian law obligations. The report also noted that the ongoing Israeli Defense Forces operation in the West Bank has caused the largest mass displacement of Palestinians in the West Bank since Israel occupied the territory in 1967. (Jurist)
UNRWA is banned from operating in areas under Israei jurisdiction.