Displaced Palestinians collect to gather parts of cooked meals at a charity distribution in Jabalia within the northern Gaza Strip on Could 19, 2025. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu mentioned on Could 19 that Israel will “take management” of the entire of Gaza, because the navy pressed a newly intensified marketing campaign within the war-ravaged territory. After Israel introduced it will let restricted assist into Gaza, the top of the World Well being Group issued a stark warning on the humanitarian disaster within the territory, saying that “two million persons are ravenous.” (Photograph by Bashar TALEB / AFP)
GAZA CITY, Palestinian Territories — Israel mentioned Monday it will “take management” of the entire of Gaza because it intensified assaults throughout the territory, the place assist trickled in for the primary time in over two months after the easing of a complete blockade.
With provide shipments blocked by Israel since March 2, the World Well being Group warned Gaza’s “two million persons are ravenous.”
Israel, going through mounting criticism over the humanitarian disaster, introduced it will let restricted assist into Gaza and mentioned the primary 5 vehicles entered Monday carrying provides “together with meals for infants.”
UN humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher mentioned in an announcement that 9 vehicles had been “cleared to enter… however it’s a drop within the ocean of what’s urgently wanted.”
UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric, who was unable to verify the variety of vehicles inside Gaza, mentioned that “not one of the assist has been picked up” at a chosen zone because it was “already darkish” and as a consequence of “safety issues, we can not function in these situations.”
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu mentioned assist had resumed as a result of “pictures of mass hunger” might hurt the legitimacy of Israel’s warfare effort.
The leaders of Britain, France, and Canada issued a harsh condemnation of Israel’s conduct of the warfare, slamming its “egregious actions” in Gaza, notably the expanded offensive and the “wholly insufficient” resumption of assist.
They warned of “concrete actions” if Israel didn’t ease its stepped-up offensive. Netanyahu known as their joint assertion a “big prize” for Hamas.
A gaggle of twenty-two international locations, together with France, Britain, Canada, Japan, and Australia mentioned in a joint assertion that Gaza’s inhabitants “faces hunger” and “should obtain the help they desperately want.”
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‘Methodical destruction’
In southern Gaza, the Israeli navy issued an evacuation name to Palestinians round Khan Yunis metropolis forward of what it described as an “unprecedented assault.”
Gaza’s civil defence company mentioned 91 individuals have been killed in Israeli assaults throughout the territory on Monday.
Netanyahu, in a video posted on Telegram, mentioned that “the preventing is intense and we’re making progress”.
“We are going to take management of all of the territory of the strip,” he added.
Israel’s navy mentioned on Monday it had struck “160 terror targets” in Gaza over the previous day.
The UN’s OHCHR rights workplace mentioned Israel’s actions have been “in defiance of worldwide regulation and tantamount to ethnic cleaning.”
Netanyahu mentioned that Israel “is not going to surrender. However with a purpose to succeed, we should act in a approach that can not be stopped,” justifying to his hardline supporters the choice to renew assist.
Famine threat
Israel has mentioned its blockade aimed to drive concessions from Hamas — whose October 2023 assault triggered the warfare — however UN companies say there are vital shortages of meals, clear water, gasoline and medicines.
“Tonnes of meals is blocked on the border, simply minutes away,” World Well being Group chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus mentioned.
“The chance of famine in Gaza is rising with the deliberate withholding of humanitarian assist.”
Final week US President Donald Trump, a key ally of Netanyahu, acknowledged that “lots of people are ravenous.”
Israel’s far-right Nationwide Safety Minister Itamar Ben Gvir argued towards any resumption of assist, saying on X that “our hostages obtain no humanitarian assist.”
However Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, additionally of the far proper, defended the choice, saying it will “enable civilians to eat and our pals on this planet to maintain giving us diplomatic safety.”
‘Like apocalypse’
Khan Yunis resident Mohammed Sarhan informed AFP that Gaza’s important southern metropolis “felt just like the apocalypse.”
“There was gunfire coming from each condo, fireplace belts, F-16 warplanes and helicopters firing,” he mentioned.
Israeli navy spokesman Avichay Adraee known as on Gazans within the metropolis and close by areas to “instantly” go away the “harmful fight zone.”
AFPTV footage from Khan Yunis’s Nasser Hospital confirmed a younger boy in a tracksuit being handled as two different boys, each barefoot and bleeding, sat on the ground.
Additional north in Deir el-Balah, Ayman Badwan mourned the lack of his brother in an assault.
“We’re exhausted and drained — we will’t take it anymore,” he informed AFP.
Hamas’s October 2023 assault on southern Israel resulted within the deaths of 1,218 individuals, largely civilians, in keeping with an AFP tally primarily based on official figures.
Militants additionally took 251 hostages, 57 of whom stay in Gaza, together with 34 the navy says, are useless.
Gaza’s well being ministry mentioned Monday a minimum of 3,340 individuals have been killed since Israel resumed strikes on March 18, taking the warfare’s total toll to 53,486.
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With negotiators assembly in Qatar in current days, Netanyahu has signalled that Israel was open to a deal that would come with “ending the preventing”, with all hostages launched, Hamas leaders exiled and Gaza disarmed.
