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WASHINGTON — The US threatened Israel with cutting some military assistance if they do not boost humanitarian aid access to Gaza within 30 days.
The written warning from the Biden administration to Netanyahu’s government is the strongest known formal caution issued to the American ally since the start of the war in Gaza.
In the letter, signed by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin on Tuesday, the US said it has “deep concern” about “the deteriorating humanitarian situation” in the region.
According to the letter, Israel denied or impeded nearly 90% of the humanitarian aid being transported within Gaza last month.
It also stated that evacuation orders have forced almost two million people into a narrow strip where they are at “high risk of lethal contagion.”
Israeli strikes continued in the southern Gaza Strip overnight into Tuesday, reportedly killing at least 15 people, including six children and two women.
Criticism of Israel has become more widespread within global politics as the war between Israel and Hamas drags on, claiming more than 42,000 Palestinian lives according to Gaza’s Health Ministry.
This criticism took on an unprecedented level after Israel launched a ground invasion of neighboring Lebanon – claiming the operation’s purpose was to stamp out Hezbollah bases as the paramilitary group launched more and more attacks against Israel.
Israeli attacks on United Nations’ peacekeepers during this assault have drawn international condemnation, with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu calling the accusations that Israel deliberately targeted UNIFIL personnel “completely false.”
German Foreign Chancellor Annalena Baerbock said UNIFIL must be protected in order to perform its duty more robustly.
However, she also said Israel had a right of self-defense and that Hezbollah locations must be eliminated.
Hezbollah’s acting leader declared on Tuesday that the Lebanese militant group is focused on “hurting the enemy” by targeting Haifa and other parts of Israel, including Tel Aviv.
Sheikh Naim Kassem, Hezbollah’s deputy chief who assumed leadership after Hassan Nasrallah was killed in an Israeli airstrike, vowed in a televised speech to “defeat our enemies and drive them out of our lands.” — Euronews
