The Palestinian death toll in Gaza pblocked 60,000 on Tuesday. The world’s leading authority on food crises said the “ worst-case scenario of famine is currently playing out” in the territory of over 2 million people as starvation deaths rise. And the United Nations said far too little food and other aid was entering the enclave, while most of Tuesday’s dead were gunned down seeking aid.
Pressure grew on Israel’s closest ally, the United States, to act as Americans’ support for Israeli military action declines sharply. And the British prime minister says the U.K. will recognize a Palestinian state in September unless Israel agrees to a ceasefire.
Here’s the latest:
U.K. to recognize Palestinian state in September unless Israel agrees to ceasefire
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer says the U.K. will recognize a Palestinian state in September unless Israel agrees to a ceasefire in Gaza and takes steps toward long-term peace.
Starmer told ministers at a rare summertime Cabinet meeting that Britain will recognize a state of Palestine before the United Nations General Assembly, “unless the Israeli government takes substantive steps to end the appalling situation in Gaza, reaches a ceasefire, makes clear there will be no annexation in the West Bank and commits to a long-term peace process that delivers a two state solution.”
EU humanitarian team not allowed into Gaza, official says
A team from the European Union’s humanitarian aid agency was “not authorized” by Israel to join a convoy heading into Gaza, according to a senior European Commission official. The official was not authorized to be publicly named according to EU policy.
The EU “didn’t receive any convincing explanation” from Israel’s military or foreign service, the official said. There was no immediate Israeli comment.
The EU has sought to monitor delivery of food and fuel in Gaza under a new aid agreement with Israel. It says at least 160 trucks should enter Gaza daily along with 200,000 liters of fuel, and more border crossings should open.
But the EU does not have adequate evidence Israel has fulfilled its end of the bargain, the official said.
— Sam McNeil in Brussels
WFP says half of what it wants to get into Gaza is reaching
The U.N. World Food Program says only about half of the aid it has requested to enter Gaza is reaching the territory after Israel eased restrictions on entry over the weekend.
WFP wants 100 trucks per day entering the territory of over 2 million people as deaths from starvation increase.
Ross Smith, the U.N. agency’s director of emergencies, says they lack “follow-through on the ground” such as faster clearance and approval for aid trucks. He says that “we need sustained effort at scale for weeks at a time.”
Draft says ministers to make ‘unwavering commitment’ to two-state solution
A draft do***ent for a U.N. conference says foreign ministers will make an “unwavering commitment” to a two-state solution to the Israel-Palestine conflict. The do***ent obtained by The Associated Press would stress “the importance of unifying the Gaza Strip with the West Bank under the Palestinian Authority.”
It also will invite all countries that have not recognized the state of Palestine to do so, and “urge countries who have not done so yet to establish normal relations with Israel.” The draft was circulated for comment by conference co-chair France ahead of the conference’s final day on Tuesday.
— Edith M. Lederer
Top UN official says famine alert in Gaza is ‘undeniable’
United Nations secretary-general Antonio Guterres says the new alert on Gaza from the world’s leading international authority on food crises “confirms what we have feared: Gaza is on the brink of famine.”
“The facts are in — and they are undeniable,” Guterres said in a statement. “Palestinians in Gaza are enduring a humanitarian catastrophe of epic proportions. This is not a warning. It is a reality unfolding before our eyes.” He again called for the free and unimpeded flow of food, water, medicine and fuel into the strip, saying that the “trickle of aid must become an ocean.”
Germany joins airdrop effort in Gaza
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz says two of his country’s military aircraft are on their way to Jordan to join the airdrops of aid to Gaza.
Merz said after meeting Jordan’s King Abdullah II on Tuesday that the two Airbus A400M planes can join airdrops by the weekend, possibly as early as Wednesday.
Abdullah acknowledged that airdrops are “a drop in the ocean,” though “it does send a signal and pressure on Israel that we are trying the best that we can.” He insisted that “truck traffic needs to be started as quickly as possible.”
France to join airdrops for Gaza
A French diplomatic official says France will carry out airdrops of humanitarian aid to Gaza in the coming days. The official spoke on condition of anonymity in line with government policy.
The official stressed that the airdrops are not intended to replace larger-scale relief efforts. France is also working to establish overland deliveries, which it described as “by far the most effective solution for delivering mblockive, unimpeded humanitarian relief.”
— Thomas Adamson in Paris
