Israel-Hamas war: U.S. drops more aid into Gaza; Palestinian ministry says at least 25 have died of malnutrition
Negotiators had hoped for a cease-fire deal before the start of Ramadan. The U.S. is attempting to surge humanitarian aid by air and sea, as vulnerable Gazans begin to die of malnutrition.
Updated March 9, 2024, 4:20 PM MST
By NBC News
What we know
- Just a couple of days before Ramadan, President Joe Biden said a cease-fire is “looking tough” after negotiations in Cairo failed to produce a breakthrough, raising fears that Israel will launch a ground offensive on Rafah. The U.N. warned that “this already catastrophic situation may slide deeper into the abyss,” if IDF troops are deployed into the city, where 1.5 million people are seeking refuge.
- Secretary of State Antony Blinken spoke to his counterparts in Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Turkey yesterday, urging calm during Ramadan and discussing the U.S. intention to surge humanitarian aid into Gaza. Biden warned Israel during his State of the Union address that humanitarian assistance cannot be “a bargaining chip.”
- The U.S., along with allies, announced a plan to develop a maritime corridor to ship aid into Gaza, amid criticism that sending aid by air and sea falls far short of meeting the needs of Gaza’s population of 2.2 million. The maritime corridor could take as long as 60 days to be fully operational.
- Canada and Sweden have resumed funding to UNRWA, the embattled U.N. humanitarian aid agency, in light of the dire humanitarian situation in Gaza and after assurances of more strengthened internal supervision. More than a dozen countries pulled funding after Israel accused a dozen of its 13,000 staff members of participating in the Oct. 7 attacks.
- The death toll in Gaza has surpassed 30,900, according to the Health Ministry, including at least 20 people who have died of starvation. The Israeli military said that at least 247 soldiers have been killed since the ground invasion of Gaza began.
The Prophecy Blog 