Over the past few weeks, the images coming out of Gaza have become impossible to ignore, even for Israel’s staunchest allies. Emaciated children, newborns dying from dehydration, and reports of adults collapsing from hunger made headlines around the world. More than 100 prominent humanitarian organizations signed a joint statement urging “decisive action” to end the siege, while the UN’s World Food Programme warned that a third of Gazans are going several days without eating at all. Even celebrities who haven’t said a word about Israel’s ongoing assault on Gaza for two years felt compelled to condemn its latest phase.
In turn, several Western governments that are usually reluctant to openly criticize Israel began to issue statements of concern, calling for an unimpeded flow of aid. Britain and France joined the chorus — the latter taking the additional step of announcing it will recognize a Palestinian state — and even U.S. President Donald Trump has now called out what he described as “real starvation” in Gaza, in a public rebuke of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
This past weekend, in the face of growing international pressure, Israel announced several measures ostensibly aimed at allaying the humanitarian crisis it created: a daily 10-hour “tactical pause in military activity” within the 13 percent of Gaza that remains accessible to Palestinians; the opening of “secure routes” to allow more aid trucks to enter the Strip; and the resumption of aid drops from the sky.
Hellbound and Down 