Israel allows direct aid to northern Gaza, raising hopes for more

Even as Israel allowed aid to go directly north, Philippe Lazzarini, head of UNRWA, the main UN agency providing support to Palestinians in Gaza, said Israeli forces had attacked a food distribution center in the southern city of Rafah, killing one organization died. worker and injured 22 others. He said the center was hit even though UNRWA shares the coordinates of its facilities with all parties to the war.

“Attacks on UN facilities, convoys and personnel have become commonplace, in blatant disregard for international humanitarian law,” Mr Lazzarini said.

The Israeli military said in a statement that Wednesday’s attack “precisely targeted and eliminated a terrorist” but made no mention of the injuries of others. It identified the target as Muhammad Abu Hasna, who “coordinated the activities of several Hamas units,” and provided information about Israeli military positions to Hamas fighters.

As Israel pursues its goal of eradicating Hamas, the army said Wednesday it had killed a senior Hamas operative in an airstrike in southern Lebanon, the latest in a series of targeted killings carried out in Lebanon after October 7.

The Hamas official, Hadi Ali Mustafa, was “a key official in the Hamas branch responsible for its international terrorist activities,” the Israeli military said in a statement. It added that he had been involved in attacks “on Israeli and Jewish targets in several countries around the world.” It provided no further details and its claims could not be independently verified.

In a statement, Hamas’s military wing confirmed that Mr. Mustafa had been killed, but gave no indication of his role within the organization. The Israeli airstrike on a car near the southern Lebanese coastal city of Tire also killed a passing motorcyclist, Lebanese state media reported.

Israel has faced increasing pressure to allow more aid into Gaza, including from the United States, which last week outlined a plan to deliver supplies by sea. On Tuesday, a ship carrying more than 200 tons of food left for the territory of Cyprus, in the first test of the sea route. Military aircraft from several countries, including the United States, have also dropped aid in Gaza.

Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken said Wednesday that he had spoken with officials from Cyprus, Britain, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar about the maritime corridor for ships carrying humanitarian goods. He said land routes remain the best way to get large amounts of aid into Gaza, but only if Israel opens more crossings.

“Israel still needs to open and keep open as many entry points as possible to ensure that things proceed in a sustainable manner,” he said at a news conference in Washington.

Aid agencies have said a difficult Israeli inspection process has delayed crucial humanitarian aid.