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Israeli forces killed at least 63 people across Gaza hours after the military announced it would begin “pausing” attacks for 10 hours daily in some areas to allow humanitarian aid to pass through.
On Sunday, the Israeli army said it would temporarily halt military activity each day from 10am to 8pm (07:00-17:00 GMT) in parts of central and northern Gaza, including al-Mawasi, Deir el-Balah and Gaza City. It also pledged to open designated aid corridors for food and medical convoys between 6am and 11pm.
But hours into the first day of the “humanitarian pauses” Israeli air raids resumed.
“There was an air strike on Gaza City, and this is one of the areas that was designated as a safe area and where the Israeli forces are going to halt their military operations,” Al Jazeera’s Hind Khoudary reported from Deir el-Balah.
“According to Palestinians in that area a bakery was targeted.”
The bombardment comes as global outcry grows over the worsening humanitarian disaster in Gaza inflicted by Israel.
Famine deaths rise
Gaza’s Health Ministry reported six more Palestinians, including two children, died from hunger-related causes in the past 24 hours, pushing the number of starvation deaths to 133 since October 2023.
Among the dead was 5-month-old Zainab Abu Haleeb who succumbed to malnutrition at Nasser Hospital.
“Three months inside the hospital and this is what I get in return, that she is dead,” said her mother Israa Abu Haleeb as the child’s father cradled her small body wrapped in a white shroud.
The World Food Programme (WFP) said on Sunday that one in three Gaza residents has gone days without eating, and nearly 500,000 people are suffering from “famine-like conditions”. The World Health Organization also warned last week more than 20 percent of pregnant and breastfeeding women are malnourished.
Falestine Ahmed, a mother in Gaza, told Al Jazeera she lost one-third of her body weight because of a lack of food.
“I used to weigh 57kg, now I weigh 42kg, and both my son and I have been diagnosed with severe malnutrition,” she said. “We barely have any food at home and even when it’s available, it’s far too expensive for us to afford.”
Israel has authorised new corridors for aid and the United Arab Emirates and Jordan have airdropped supplies into the territory. However, deliveries have been fraught with danger and are far too little.
Al Jazeera’s Hani Mahmoud reported one aid drop caused casualties. “Eleven people were reported with injuries as one of these pallets fell directly on tents in that displacement site near al-Rasheed Road.”
Palestinians struggle to get donated food at a community kitchen in Gaza City [Abdel Kareem Hana/AP]
Despite the mounting evidence of extreme hunger, Israel continues to deny famine exists in Gaza. The Israeli military insists it is working to improve humanitarian access.
But scenes of desperation contradict official claims. “I’ve come all this way, risking my life for my children. They haven’t eaten for a week,” said Smoud Wahdan, a mother searching for flour, speaking to Al Jazeera. “At the very least I’ve been looking for a piece of bread for my children.”
Another displaced mother, Tahani, said her cancer-stricken child was among those suffering. “I came to get flour, to look for food to feed my children. I wish God’s followers would wake up and see all these people. They are dying.”
Aid groups overwhelmed
Liz Allcock, head of protection for Medical Aid for Palestinians, told Al Jazeera she has never seen Gaza in such a state. “The scale of starvation and the number of people you see walking around who are literally skin and bones [is shocking]… Money really has no value here when there is nothing to buy,” she said.
“All of Gazan society – no matter who they are – is suffering from critical food shortages,” she added, warning one-quarter of the population is at risk of acute malnutrition.
The United Nations says aid deliveries can only succeed if Israel approves rapid movement of convoys through its checkpoints.
UN aid chief Tom Fletcher noted while some restrictions appeared to have eased, the scale of the crisis required far more action.
“This is progress but vast amounts of aid are needed to stave off famine and a catastrophic health crisis,” he said.
Palestinians carry aid supplies that entered Gaza through Israel in Beit Lahiya in northern Gaza [Dawoud Abu Alkas/Reuters]
Diplomatic pressure builds
French President Emmanuel Macron said on Sunday he discussed the Gaza situation with his Turkish and Egyptian counterparts and plans to co-host a conference in New York City next week focused on securing a two-state solution.
“We cannot accept that people, including large numbers of children, die of hunger,” he said.
Macron confirmed France would soon recognise Palestinian statehood, joining more than 140 UN member states.
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said in an interview Israel’s blockade of aid amounts to a violation of “humanity and morality”.
“Quite clearly it is a breach of international law to stop food being delivered, which was a decision that Israel made in March,” he told ABC News. However, he added Australia is not ready to recognise Palestine “imminently”.
In Washington, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said ceasefire talks led by Trump’s envoy Steve Witkoff are making “a lot of progress”.
“We’re optimistic and hopeful that any day now we will have a ceasefire agreement,” Rubio told Fox News, suggesting half the remaining Israeli captives may be released soon.
The Gaza Health Ministry said 88 Palestinians were killed and 374 wounded in Israeli attacks over the past 24 hours alone.
Since Israel’s war on Gaza began in October, at least 59,821 Palestinians have been killed and more than 144,000 injured.
Despite talk of pauses and diplomacy, the violence continues to escalate.
