During a press conference, which Benjamin Netanyahu said was convened to \u201cdispel lies,\u201d the Israeli prime minister stated that the planned offensive would begin \u201cfairly soon\u201d and \u201cfree Gaza from Hamas.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He claimed that Israeli hostages held in the enclave were \u201cthe only ones deliberately starved\u201d and denied that Israel was blocking access to food for Gaza\u2019s civilian population.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Meanwhile, Israel faced strong criticism at an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council. The UK, France, and other countries warned that the plan could \u201cviolate international humanitarian law.\u201d Together with Denmark, Greece, and Slovenia, they called for the offensive to be canceled, saying it \u201cwould not help free the hostages and could further endanger their lives.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
China called the \u201ccollective punishment\u201d of Gaza\u2019s population unacceptable, while Russia warned against \u201creckless escalation of hostilities.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
UN Assistant Secretary-General Miroslav Jen\u010da stressed:
\u201cIf these plans are implemented, they will likely cause new disaster in Gaza, spread the conflict across the region, and lead to further forced displacement, deaths, and destruction.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Ramesh Rajasingham from the UN\u2019s humanitarian office said that famine was already ongoing in Gaza, not just a threat:
\u201cThis is famine, pure and clear.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The US, for its part, defended Israel. Ambassador Dorothy Shea said Washington was working \u201crelentlessly\u201d to free the hostages and end the war, and that the meeting only hampered those efforts. She emphasized that the war \u201ccould end today if Hamas releases the hostages\u201d and rejected genocide allegations against Israel as \u201cclearly false.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Later on Sunday, Netanyahu\u2019s office reported his conversation with US President Donald Trump about Israel\u2019s plans.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Thousands of protesters took to the streets across Israel, expressing concern that the government\u2019s plan endangered the hostages\u2019 lives.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Netanyahu said the Israel Defense Forces had been ordered to eliminate \u201ctwo Hamas strongholds\u201d \u2013 in Gaza City and the Al-Mawasi area. He outlined a three-phase plan to increase humanitarian aid, which includes:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The UN previously reported that since late May, when the GHF began operations, 1,373 Palestinians had been killed while searching for food.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Netanyahu accused Hamas of \u201cbrutally looting aid trucks\u201d and said the group was also responsible for many attacks on GHF facilities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Regarding the hostages, 20 of whom are estimated to still be alive, the prime minister said:
\u201cIf we do nothing, we will not save them.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He criticized the international press, accusing it of spreading \u201cHamas propaganda\u201d and calling some global images of starving children \u201cfake.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Israel had not allowed foreign journalists to freely cover events in Gaza, but Netanyahu said a new directive allowing them into the conflict zone had been in place for two days.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
According to the Gaza Health Ministry, controlled by Hamas, another five people have died from hunger and malnutrition since Saturday, raising the total to 217. Overall, more than 61,000 people have been killed since the start of Israel\u2019s campaign in 2023.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Israel launched its military operation in response to the October 7, 2023 Hamas attack, which killed about 1,200 Israelis and took 251 people hostage. The Gaza Health Ministry\u2019s data has previously been regarded as credible by the UN and other international organizations during conflicts.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":5005,"template":"","acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n