Israel announced on Saturday that it will implement a “humanitarian pause” in parts of Gaza in order to allow the surging of aid into the region.
In a statement, the Israeli Foreign Ministry said the pause, which will start on Sunday morning, will apply to “civilian centers” and “humanitarian corridors.”
“Tomorrow morning Israel will apply a ‘humanitarian pause’ in civilian centers and in humanitarian corridors to enable the distribution of aid supply. Israel has continued to facilitate the entry of aid trucks into the Gaza strip,” the statement said.
The foreign ministry added that the United Nations, which Israel has previously accused of failing to distribute aid, would now be expected to “collect and distribute the large quantities of aid, without any further delay or excuses.”
The announcement of a pause comes as airdrops of aid are also scheduled to resume in Gaza, an operation which was previously suspended for months.
The Israel Defense Forces said in a statement earlier Saturday that those food drops will include “seven pallets of aid containing flour, sugar, and canned food.” A power line running from Israel to a Gaza desalination plant has also been reconnected, which the IDF said will boost daily water output to over 5 million gallons.
ISRAEL TO RESUME ALLOWING FOOD DROPS AMID GAZA AID CRISIS
The surging of aid follows recent warnings from Israel’s critics that civilians in Gaza are facing mass starvation.
Both the Israeli Foreign Ministry and IDF denied that assessment on Saturday, which they dismissed as Hamas “propaganda.”