Five weeks of war have worsened the humanitarian crisis, and there is increasing pressure for Israel to halt the attack on Hamas and allow more aid into the Gaza Strip. The crisis is particularly severe in hospitals, which are struggling to provide assistance.
The situation in Gaza has worsened in the past week with food and medical supplies shortages and over 11,000 deaths, according to health authorities. The United Nations, aid groups, and key allies, including French President Emmanuel Macron, have urged Israel to briefly cease fighting to allow supplies to enter, foreigners to leave, and hostages to be released.
Israel has agreed to brief daily pauses to allow Gazans to flee. Nearly 80,000 people headed south last week as the Israeli army advanced further into the territory.
World leaders have also changed their tone in the past two weeks: many of Israel’s allies who initially offered unconditional support now call for at least a humanitarian pause, if not a ceasefire. Israel has repeatedly rejected ceasefire requests since October 7, when Hamas and other armed groups killed at least 1,200 people in an early morning ambush in southern Israel.
One of the most forceful calls for a pause came from US Secretary of State Antony Blinken. “Too many Palestinians have died,” he told the press in New Delhi on Friday, after a diplomatic tour of Middle Eastern and Asian countries. Blinken’s statements were the closest he has come to criticizing Israel’s conduct and hinted that the Biden administration was intensifying pressure on Israel to do more to limit harm to civilians.
The Israeli army has targeted thousands of objects in the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip and began a ground invasion over two weeks ago. Authorities have stated that they are doing everything possible to limit civilian casualties, but efforts are complicated because Hamas uses civilians and civilian facilities, including hospitals, to hide its members and weapons.
In Tel Aviv, protesters expressed their frustration with the government for the second consecutive weekend over its response to the 200+ hostages captured by Hamas and other militant groups on October 7. So far, efforts led by the United States and Qatar to secure the release of the hostages have made little progress, fueling discontent with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his government in Israel.
Protesters in London and New York continued to hold rallies in support of Palestinians and called for a ceasefire. Over 300,000 people marched in London on Saturday in support of Palestinians and to denounce the increasing number of civilian casualties in Gaza. It was the largest protest in years in London and the latest pro-Palestinian march held on Saturdays since the start of the war.
Megan Specia, Raja Abdulrahim, and Adam Sella contributed reporting.