Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said his forces would “take control of all areas” of the Gaza Strip and that Israel would act to prevent famine by lifting a weeks-long humanitarian blockade, although he stressed that the resources allowed would be “minimal”.
“There is one key condition: we must not allow famine, either practically or diplomatically. The people will simply no longer support us. We will not be able to complete the mission of victory,” Netanyahu said in a video posted on his Telegram channel on Monday morning.
He confirmed that a plan had been agreed with the United States under which American companies would deliver aid through points secured by the Israeli military. He accused Hamas of looting previously delivered aid.
Netanyahu said the decision to resume aid deliveries to Gaza came after pressure from allies, who expressed concern over “images of hunger”.
Israel’s “greatest friends in the world,” he said, without naming specific countries, said: “There is one thing we cannot tolerate. We cannot accept images of famine, mass starvation. We cannot tolerate that. We will not be able to support you.”
“So, to achieve victory, we must somehow resolve this problem. The aid that will be allowed into Gaza will be “minimal. Our large-scale entry is essentially about taking control of all of Gaza and preventing Hamas from plundering humanitarian aid,” Netanyahu said.
US President Donald Trump addressed the situation in Gaza during his recent tour of the Middle East.
“We are looking at Gaza, we have to resolve it, a lot of people are starving. “There are a lot of bad things happening,” Trump said during a visit to the United Arab Emirates. Earlier, during a visit to Qatar, he suggested that the United States take control of Gaza and turn it into a “free zone.”
“If necessary, I would be proud for the United States to take over Gaza, to take it, to turn it into a free zone. Let something good happen, let people have homes where they can be safe, and Hamas will have to be dealt with,” Trump said in an address to US troops.
