Israel says it will allow a limited amount of aid into Gaza to avert ‘hunger crisis’

DEIR AL BALAH, Gaza Strip — Israel announced Sunday that it will allow a limited amount of humanitarian aid into Gaza after a nearly three-month blockade to avert a “hunger crisis,” days after global experts on food crises warned of famine.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said his Cabinet approved a decision to allow a “basic” amount of food into the territory of more than 2 million people, saying a hunger crisis in Gaza would jeopardize Israel’s new military offensive there.

It was not immediately clear when aid would enter Gaza, or how. The Israeli military body in charge of overseeing aid did not comment. Israel has been trying to impose a new aid system despite objections by aid workers. Netanyahu said Israel would work to ensure that the militant group Hamas will not control distribution and that aid does not reach militants.

Israel imposed the blockade on March 2, cutting off all food, medicine and other supplies to Gaza, while pressing Hamas to accept new ceasefire terms. Israel resumed the war days later, shattering a two-month truce.

Earlier Sunday, Israel launched “extensive” new ground operations in its offensive — the largest since the ceasefire. Airstrikes killed at least 103 people, including dozens of children, Saturday night and into Sunday, hospitals and medics said. The bombardment forced northern Gaza’s main hospital to close as it reported direct strikes.

Israel wants Hamas to agree to a temporary ceasefire, one that would free hostages from Gaza but wouldn’t necessarily end the war. Hamas says it wants a full withdrawal of Israeli forces and a path to ending the war as part of any deal.

“When the Jews want a truce, Hamas refuses, and when Hamas wants a truce, the Jews refuse it. Both sides agree to exterminate the Palestinian people,” said Jabaliya resident Abu Mohammad Yassin, who was among those fleeing the new offensive on foot or in donkey carts. “For God’s sake, have mercy on us. We are tired of displacement.”

Israel’s military, which recently called up tens of thousands of reservists, said Gaza’s north and south are the target of ground operations. Israel’s chief of staff, Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir, said that plans include “dissecting” the strip.

Airstrikes killed more than 48 people — including 18 children and 13 women — in and around the southern city of Khan Yunis, according to Nasser Hospital, which said it struggled to count the dead because of the condition of bodies.

In northern Gaza, a strike on a home in Jabaliya killed nine members of a family, according to the Gaza Health Ministry’s emergency services. Another strike on a residence there killed 10, including seven children and a woman, according to the civil defense, which operates under the Hamas-run government.

Israel’s military had no immediate comment. Its statement announcing the ground operations said preliminary strikes over the last week killed dozens of militants and hit more than 670 targets. Israel blames civilian casualties on Hamas because the militant group operates from civilian areas.

Talks in Qatar

Israel had said it would wait until the end of President Trump’s visit to the Middle East before launching its offensive, saying it was giving a chance for efforts at a new deal. Trump didn’t visit Israel on his trip, which ended Friday.

Netanyahu’s office said his negotiating team in Qatar was “working to realize every chance for a deal,” including one that would bring an end to fighting in exchange for the release of all 58 remaining hostages, Hamas’ exile from Gaza and the disarmament of the Palestinian territory.

Hamas has refused to leave Gaza or disarm.

Gaza’s Health Ministry has said almost 3,000 people have been killed since the last ceasefire ended.

Frustration in Israel has been rising. A small but growing number of Israelis are refusing to show up for military service, even risking imprisonment. Other Israelis have been displaying photos of children killed in Gaza during weekly rallies demanding a deal to free all hostages and end the war.

The war in Gaza began on Oct. 7, 2023, when Hamas-led militants attacked southern Israel, killing about 1,200 people and abducting about 250 others. Israel’s retaliatory offensive has killed more than 53,000 Palestinians, most of them women and children, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, which doesn’t differentiate between civilians and combatants in its count.

Hospital cites Israeli ‘siege’

Health officials said fighting around the Indonesian Hospital in northern Gaza and an Israeli military “siege” prompted it to shut down. It was the main medical facility in the north after Israeli strikes last year forced the Kamal Adwan and Beit Hanoun hospitals to stop offering services.

“There is direct targeting on the hospital, including the intensive care unit,” Indonesian Hospital director Dr. Marwan al-Sultan said in a statement. No one could reach the facility, which had about 30 patients and 15 medical staffers inside, his statement said.

Israel’s military said that troops were operating against militant infrastructure sites in northern Gaza, including the area “directly adjacent” to the hospital.

Israel has repeatedly targeted hospitals, accusing Hamas of being active in and around the facilities. Human rights groups and United Nations-backed experts have accused Israel of systematically destroying Gaza’s healthcare system.

In northern Gaza, at least 43 people were killed in strikes, according to first responders from the Health Ministry and civil defense. Gaza City’s Shifa Hospital said 15 children and 12 women were among the dead.

A drone strike Sunday afternoon killed at least seven Palestinians near a school sheltering displaced people northwest of Gaza City, according to the Health Ministry’s emergency service.

Strikes in central Gaza killed at least 12 people, hospitals said. One in the town of Zweida killed seven people, including two children and four women, according to Al Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Deir al Balah. Another hit an apartment in Deir al Balah, killing parents and their child, the hospital said.

In Gaza City, Umm Mahmoud al-Aloul lay across the shrouded body of her daughter, Nour.

“You took my soul with you,” she cried. “I used to turn off my phone from how much you called.”

Houthi rebels launch missile at Israel

The Israeli military said it intercepted a missile launched early Sunday by Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen.

The rebels said they fired two ballistic missiles toward Israel’s main airport near Tel Aviv, whose grounds were struck by a Houthi missile this month.

Israel was left out of a recent U.S. deal to halt attacks on Houthi targets in Yemen in exchange for an end to strikes on U.S. shipping vessels in the Red Sea.

The Houthis say they are attacking in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza.

Shurafa, Magdy and Goldenberg write for the Associated Press and reported from Deir al Balah, Cairo and Tel Aviv, respectively. AP writer Melanie Lidman in Tel Aviv contributed to this report.