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BRICS Decries Gaza Violence

The ministers also called for the effective implementation of the UNSC resolution for an “immediate, durable, and sustained ceasefire…reports Asian Lite News

The BRICS Foreign Ministers expressed “grave concern” regarding the escalating violence in the Gaza Strip that has led to mass civilian displacement, death and casualties, and destruction of civilian infrastructure.

The ministers also called for the effective implementation of the UNSC resolution for an “immediate, durable, and sustained ceasefire” and the relevant UNGA resolutions and UNSC resolution for immediate safe and unhindered delivery of humanitarian assistance in Gaza.

The conflict escalated on October 7 after Hamas launched a massive terror attack on Israel killing over 1200 people and holding around 250 as hostages.

Following this, Israel launched a strong counteroffensive, carrying out military operations against Hamas in the Gaza Strip with the aim of “completely eliminating” Hamas. However, the operations have led to massive civilian casualties with over 37,000 Palestinians have been killed.

“The Ministers expressed grave concern at the deterioration of the situation in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, in particular the unprecedented escalation of violence in the Gaza Strip as a result of the Israeli military operation that led to mass civilian displacement, death and casualties, and destruction of civilian infrastructure,” the joint statement of BRICS foreign ministers meeting read.

“In this regard, they called for the effective implementation of the relevant UNGA resolutions and UNSC resolution 2720 and for immediate safe and unhindered delivery of humanitarian assistance at scale directly to the Palestinian civilian population throughout the Gaza Strip. They also called for the effective implementation of the UNSC resolution 2728 for an immediate, durable, and sustained ceasefire,” it added.

The Foreign Ministers met at the BRICS Foreign Ministers’ Meeting in Russia’s Nizhny Novgorod on Monday.

Dammu Ravi, Secretary (Economic Relations), at the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), led the Indian side at the meeting, in what was the first foreign assignment for India’s foreign policy under the historic third consecutive term of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The ministers also called for the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages and civilians who are being illegally held captive, the joint statement read.

They further expressed grave concern by the increasing attacks by Israel on Rafah, which would compound the dire humanitarian situation. The ministers condemned the Israeli military operation in Rafah and its ramifications that directly impact civilian lives, especially in view of the “high density of Palestinian civilians in this location”, and the “humanitarian catastrophic” results due to the suspension of the Rafah crossing from the Palestinian side.

The ministers also reaffirmed their rejection of any attempt aiming at forcefully displacing, expelling, or transferring the Palestinian people from their land. Furthermore, they cautioned against the spillover effects of the escalation of tensions to the rest of the Middle East region.

They acknowledged the provisional measures of the International Court of Justice in the legal proceedings instituted by South Africa against Israel. The Ministers expressed serious concern at “Israel’s continued blatant disregard” of international law, the UN Charter, UN resolutions and Court orders.

“The Ministers reaffirmed their support for Palestine’s full membership in the United Nations and reiterated their unwavering commitment to the vision of the two-state solution based on international law including relevant UNSC and UNGA resolutions and the Arab Peace Initiative that includes the establishment of a sovereign, independent and viable State of Palestine in line with internationally recognized borders of June 1967 with East Jerusalem as its capital living side by side in peace and security with Israel,” the statement read.

The ministers expressed serious concern over the prevailing conflicts and the continuing threats posed by terrorist organizations in various sub-regions of Africa and over remaining conflict potential in the Sahel region, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), the Great Lakes Region, and in the Horn of Africa, particularly in Sudan as well as growing activity of numerous terrorist groups and insurgents.

The Ministers reiterated their call for an immediate and unconditional ceasefire and peaceful resolution of the conflict in Sudan and unimpeded access of the Sudanese population to humanitarian assistance, and the scaling up of humanitarian assistance to Sudan and neighboring states.

The Foreign Ministers expressed serious concern with the ongoing deterioration of the security, humanitarian, political and economic situation in Haiti.

“They stressed that the current crisis requires a Haitian-led solution that encompasses national dialogue and consensus building among local political forces, institutions and the society and called on the international community to support the Haitian endeavours to dismantle the gangs, enhance the security situation and put in place the foundations for long-lasting social and economic development in the country,” the statement read.

The Ministers also emphasized the need for an urgent peaceful settlement in Afghanistan in order to strengthen regional security and stability.

They advocated for Afghanistan as an independent, united and peaceful state free from terrorism, war and drugs. They urged for more visible and verifiable measures in Afghanistan to ensure that the territory of Afghanistan is not used by terrorists.

“They further stressed the need to provide urgent and uninterrupted humanitarian assistance to the Afghan people and to safeguard the fundamental rights of all Afghans including women, girls, and different ethnic groups. They emphasized the primary and effective role of regional platforms and neighbouring countries of Afghanistan and welcomed the efforts of such regional platforms and initiatives to facilitate the Afghan settlement,” the statement added.

This is the first meeting of foreign ministers since the expansion of BRICS in 2023. The 10 full members of the association include Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa with new members Egypt, Iran, UAE, Saudi Arabia, and Ethiopia joining the grouping in 2023.

Russia took over the chairmanship of BRICS on January 1, 2024. (ANI)

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Aid Flow Resumes at Gaza Pier, US Confirms

The temporary harbour had been damaged in rough seas at the end of May, just a few days after its completion….reports Asian Lite Nws

The US military said that the delivery of urgently needed humanitarian aid for Gaza residents has resumed after a temporary pier on the territory’s coast was repaired.

The temporary harbour had been damaged in rough seas at the end of May, just a few days after its completion. Due to strong waves, four US military ships anchored in the area broke free from their moorings.

The regional command Centcom on Saturday said in a statement that at about 10:30 am local time (0730 GMT), it “began delivery of humanitarian assistance ashore in Gaza.”

“Today, a total of approximately 492 metric tonnes (1.1 million pounds) of much-needed humanitarian assistance was delivered to the people of Gaza. To date, USCENTCOM has assisted in the delivery of more than 1,573 metric tonnes (3.5 million pounds) of humanitarian aid,” the statement continued.

The regional command stressed that “no US military personnel went ashore in Gaza.”

“This ongoing effort in support of the US Agency for International Development (USAID) to deliver additional aid to Palestinian civilians in Gaza is entirely humanitarian in nature and involves aid commodities donated by several countries and humanitarian organisations,” Centcom said.

Under the provisional arrangement, freighters will initially bring aid supplies from Cyprus to a floating platform a few kilometres off the coast of the Gaza Strip.

The goods are then loaded onto smaller ships that can sail closer to the coast. These then dock at the temporary pier attached to the coast. There, the supplies are received by aid organisations and then distributed in the Gaza Strip by lorry.

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Iran condemns Israel’s airstrikes in Gaza

Iran blamed the US and certain European countries for providing arms to Israel and backing it in its offensive…reports Asian Lite News

Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Nasser Kanaani has strongly condemned deadly Israeli airstrikes on the Nuseirat camp in the central Gaza Strip.

In a statement released on Saturday by the Ministry, Kanaani denounced Israel’s killing of hundreds of Palestinian civilians during the attacks as a “horrendous and shocking crime”.

The “crime” perpetrated by Israel was a consequence of the “inaction” of governments and relevant international organisations in the face of eight months of “war crimes and violations of all international laws and regulations as well as international humanitarian law” by Israel in Gaza, said the Spokesman.

He blamed the US and certain European countries for providing arms to Israel and backing it in its offensive, Xinhua news agency reported.

At least 210 Palestinians were killed and more than 400 others injured in the Israeli airstrikes on Saturday in central Gaza.

Khalil Al-Dakran, director of Al-Aqsa Hospital in Deir Al-Balah city in central Gaza, told Xinhua that a large number of wounded Palestinians were sent to the hospital due to intense Israeli bombing on the Nuseirat camp and the city, some of whom have been confirmed dead.

The Israeli army has been waging a large-scale offensive on Gaza since October 7, 2023, after Hamas carried out an unprecedented attack on the Israeli towns adjacent to the strip, killing nearly 1,200 people.

The Palestinian death toll from the ongoing Israeli attacks in the enclave has risen to 36,801, with 83,680 people injured, as updated by the health authorities in Gaza on Saturday.

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Hamas demands full end to Gaza war

Biden has repeatedly declared that ceasefires were close over the past several months, only for no truce to materialize…reports Asian Lite News

The leader of Hamas said on Wednesday the group would demand a permanent end to the war in Gaza and Israeli withdrawal as part of a ceasefire plan, dealing an apparent blow to a truce proposal touted last week by US President Joe Biden.

Israel, meanwhile, said there would be no halt to fighting during ceasefire talks, and launched a new assault on a central section of the Gaza Strip near the last city yet to be stormed by its tanks.

The remarks by Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh appeared to deliver the Palestinian militant group’s reply to the proposal that Biden unveiled last week. Washington had said it was waiting to hear an answer from Hamas to what Biden described as an Israeli initiative.

“The movement and factions of the resistance will deal seriously and positively with any agreement that is based on a comprehensive ending of the aggression and the complete withdrawal and prisoners swap,” Haniyeh said.

Washington is still pressing hard to reach an agreement. CIA director William Burns met senior officials from mediators Qatar and Egypt on Wednesday in Doha to discuss the ceasefire proposal.

Since a brief week-long truce in November, all attempts to arrange a ceasefire have failed, with Hamas insisting on its demand for a permanent end to the conflict, while Israel says it is prepared to discuss only temporary pauses until the militant group is defeated.

Biden has repeatedly declared that ceasefires were close over the past several months, only for no truce to materialize. Notably, Biden said in February that Israel agreed to a ceasefire by the start of the Ramadan Muslim holy month on March 10, a deadline which passed with military operations in full swing.

But last week’s announcement came with far greater fanfare from the White House, and at a time when Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is under mounting domestic political pressure to chart a path to end the eight-month-old war and negotiate the release of Israeli hostages held by Hamas.

Three US officials told Reuters that Biden, having obtained Israel’s agreement for the proposal, had deliberately announced it without warning the Israelis he would do so, to narrow the room for Netanyahu to back away.

“We didn’t ask permission to announce the proposal,” said a senior US official granted anonymity to speak freely about the negotiations. “We informed the Israelis we were going to give a speech on the situation in Gaza. We did not go into great detail about what it was.”

Hamas, which rules Gaza, precipitated the war by attacking Israeli territory on Oct. 7, killing around 1,200 people and capturing more than 250 hostages, according to Israeli tallies. Around half of the hostages were freed in the war’s only truce so far, which lasted a week in November.

Israel’s military assault on Gaza has killed more than 36,000 people, according to health officials in the territory, who say thousands more dead are feared buried under the rubble.

Although Biden described the ceasefire proposal as an Israeli offer, Israel’s government has been lukewarm in public. A top Netanyahu aide confirmed on Sunday Israel had made the proposal even though it was “not a good deal.”

Far-right members of Netanyahu’s government have pledged to quit if he agrees to a peace deal that leaves Hamas in place, a move that could force a new election and end the political career of Israel’s longest-serving leader. Centrist opponents who joined Netanyahu’s war cabinet in a show of unity at the outset of the conflict have also threatened to quit, saying his government has no plan.

Meanwhile, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said there would be no let-up in Israel’s offensive while negotiations over the ceasefire proposal were under way.

“Any negotiations with Hamas would be conducted only under fire,” Gallant said in remarks carried by Israeli media after he flew aboard a warplane to inspect the Gaza front.

Israel announced a new operation against Hamas in central Gaza on Wednesday, where Palestinian medics said airstrikes had killed dozens of people.

Early on Thursday, the Hamas-run Gaza government media office said Israeli missiles killed at least 27 people and injured dozens who were sheltering at a UN school in Nuseirat in central Gaza.

Israel’s military said there was a Hamas compound inside the school and fighters who took part in the Oct. 7 attack on Israel “were eliminated.” It said that before the strike by Israeli fighter jets, the military took steps to reduce the risk of harm to civilians. There was no immediate comment from Hamas.

The armed wings of Hamas and Islamic Jihad said they had fought gunbattles with Israeli forces on Wednesday in areas throughout the enclave and fired anti-tank rockets and shells.

Two children were among the dead laid out on Wednesday in the city’s Al Aqsa Martyrs Hospital, one of the last hospitals functioning in Gaza. Mourners said the children had been killed along with their mother, who had been unable to leave when others in the neighborhood did.

“This is not war, it is destruction that words are unable to express,” said their father Abu Mohammed Abu Saif.

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UAE FM meets UN’s Gaza humanitarian coordinator

Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed emphasised that the UAE is making every effort to assist the Palestinian people, offering aid by land, sea, and air….reports Asian Lite News

H.H. Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Minister of Foreign Affairs, met with Sigrid Kaag, United Nations Senior Humanitarian and Reconstruction Coordinator for Gaza, in Abu Dhabi.

The two sides discussed developments in the Middle East, mechanisms to enhance the response to the worsening humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip, and ways to provide sustainable support to civilians in the Strip.

During the meeting, Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed emphasised that the UAE is making every effort to assist the Palestinian people, offering aid by land, sea, and air.

He reiterated the UAE’s support for the efforts of the United Nations and Sigrid Kaag in alleviating the suffering of the Palestinian people and addressing the humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip.

Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed noted that the current dangerous conditions in the Middle East undermine efforts to enhance the humanitarian response, stressing the importance of the international community’s combined efforts to end extremism, tension, and escalating violence.

He called for a sustainable ceasefire and the establishment of safe and sustainable channels to deliver humanitarian aid to civilians in the Gaza Strip without obstacles.

The meeting was attended by Lana Zaki Nusseibeh, Assistant Minister of Foreign Affairs for Political Affairs.

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Biden slams ICC’s request to arrest Netanyahu

US president insists Israel and Hamas cannot be compared after ICC seeks warrants over alleged Israeli war crimes…reports Asian Lite News

President Joe Biden has defended Israel against war crimes charges in the world’s top courts.

Biden’s remarks came after Karim Khan, the chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC), said he was seeking arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Minister of Defence Yoav Gallant over alleged war crimes committed during the war in Gaza.

“Let me be clear, we reject the ICC’s application for arrest warrants against Israeli leaders,” Biden said at a Jewish American Heritage Month event at the White House on Monday, the same day Khan announced he was applying for the arrest warrants for Netanyahu and Gallant, as well as Hamas leaders over alleged war crimes.

“There is no equivalence between Israel and Hamas,” Biden added. Hours earlier, he had issued a strongly-worded statement saying that the ICC warrants were “outrageous”.

Israel is also facing a separate case on alleged genocide at the International Court of Justice (ICJ), which was brought by South Africa. Biden said that Israel is not committing genocide in Gaza.

“Contrary to allegations against Israel made by the International Court of Justice (ICJ), what’s happening in Gaza is not genocide. We reject that,” Biden said in his speech.

In January, the ICJ ruled there was a plausible risk of genocide in Gaza, ordering Israel to take a series of provisional measures, including preventing any genocidal acts from taking place.

While Biden’s defence of Israel was met with warm applause at the White House event, his election campaign has been marred by pro-Palestinian protests across the US, with some antiwar advocates labelling the president “Genocide Joe”.

The ICC prosecutor outlined specific charges against Netanyahu and Gallant, including “starvation of civilians as a method of warfare” and “extermination”, although he said his full investigation was ongoing.

Khan also applied for arrest warrants for three Hamas leaders – Yahya Sinwar, Mohammed Diab Ibrahim al-Masri (also known as Deif) and Ismail Haniyeh – for war crimes and crimes against humanity, including extermination and murder, the taking of captives, torture, rape and other acts of sexual violence.

The charges were supported by evidence prepared by a panel of experts that included international human rights lawyer Amal Clooney.

In a statement issued on the report prepared by the experts, Clooney wrote, “I do not accept that any conflict should be beyond the reach of the law, nor that any perpetrator should be above the law.”

“My colleagues and I look forward to make sure neither Khan, his associates nor their families will ever set foot again in the United States,” Republican Senator Tom Cotton wrote on X.

The ICC is the world’s first permanent international war crimes court and its 124 member states are obliged to immediately arrest the wanted person if they are on a member state’s territory.

The US is not a member of the ICC and its “biggest leverage” could be to pressure its allies – mostly European nations which are signatories to the ICC – to not act on the warrants, said Al Jazeera’s Heidi Zhou-Castro, reporting from Washington, DC.

Lawmakers seek sanctions to “punish” ICC  

United States lawmakers are contemplating imposing sanctions on the International Criminal Court (ICC) if it issues an arrest warrant for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, US House Speaker Mike Johnson said.

“In the absence of leadership from the White House, Congress is reviewing all options, including sanctions, to punish the ICC and ensure its leadership faces consequences if they proceed. If the ICC is allowed to threaten Israeli leaders, ours could be next,” the US House Speaker said in a statement on Monday (local time).

He further said “The ICC has no authority over Israel or the United States, and today’s baseless and illegitimate decision should face global condemnation.”

Republican lawmakers on Monday called for the United States to impose sanctions on the ICC.

House Republican Conference Chair Elise Stefanik told the New York Post that “The ICC is an illegitimate court that equivocates a peaceful nation protecting its right to exist with radical terror groups that commit genocide”. Stefanik met with Netanyahu on Monday morning as the warrants were announced.

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries in a statement called the warrants “shameful and unserious.”

Earlier this month, Representative Texas introduced the Illegitimate Court Counteraction Act to revoke visas for ICC officials who investigate or prosecute US officials or American allies.

Meanwhile, human rights attorney Amal Clooney is among the experts who advised the ICC prosecutor to seek the arrest warrants.

The wife of actor George Clooney in a statement said explained how she had found herself advising ICC chief prosecutor Khan.

“I served on this panel because I believe in the rule of law and the need to protect civilian lives. The law that protects civilians in war was developed more than 100 years ago and it applies in every country in the world regardless of the reasons for a conflict,” Clooney said in the statement shared on the shared on the Clooney Foundation for Justice website.

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No Genocide in Gaza, Repeats Biden

Biden rejected the International Court of Justice’s claims, stating that it is not genocide…reports Asian Lite News

US President Joe Biden has rejected accusations against the Israeli leadership that it is committing genocide in its fight against the Palestinian militant organisation Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

“Contrary to allegations against Israel made by the International Court of Justice, what’s happening is not genocide. We reject that,” Biden said on Monday in the Rose Garden of the White House at a Jewish American Heritage Month event.

On Monday, International Criminal Court (ICC) chief prosecutor Karim Khan applied for arrest warrants for Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defence Minister Joav Galant for alleged crimes against humanity.

The request for warrants for Netanyahu and Gallant relates to alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity committed in the Gaza Strip beginning on October 8, a day after Hamas militants launched their unprecedented attack on Israel.

Among the allegations are “starvation of civilians as a method of warfare” and “intentionally directing attacks against a civilian population,” a statement from Khan’s office said.

Arrest warrants were also requested for the leader of Hamas in the Gaza Strip, Yehya al-Sinwar, and other representatives of the militant organisation.

South Africa has repeatedly called on the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague to take action against Israel and accused the country of genocide.

In urgent rulings, the UN judges have obliged Israel to do everything possible to prevent genocide and to allow humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip.

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UNRWA: Nearly 800,000 now displaced from Rafah

Following evacuation orders demanding people to flee to so-called safe zones, people mainly went to the middle areas in Gaza and Khan Younis, including to destroyed buildings, according to UNRWA…reports Asian Lite News

Roughly 800,000 people have been forced to flee Rafah since Israel launched a military operation in the area on 6 May, the head of UN Palestine refugee agency UNRWA said on Saturday in a renewed appeal for greater protection of civilians in Gaza, safe humanitarian access and, ultimately, a ceasefire.

“Once again, nearly half of the population of Rafah or 800,000 people are on the road,” Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini wrote in post on the social media platform X. formerly Twitter.

He said that following evacuation orders demanding people to flee to so-called safe zones, people mainly went to the middle areas in Gaza and Khan Younis, including to destroyed buildings.

“The claim that people in Gaza can move to ‘safe’ or ‘humanitarian’ zones is false. Each time, it puts the lives of civilians at serious risk,” Lazzarini stated.

“Gaza does not have any safe zones,” he added. “No place is safe. No one is safe.”

False accusations against UNRWA: Jordan

Jordan’s Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi has said that anyone claiming the situation in the Gaza Strip is improving is not telling the truth, and accusations against the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) have been proven false.

He made the remarks at a joint press conference in Amman with UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini, during which he said on Sunday that UNRWA is fulfilling its duty in the Palestinian enclave despite the circumstances of the Gaza conflict, Xinhua news agency reported.

Safadi confirmed that Jordan continues to stand by UNRWA, the role of which cannot be dispensed with or replaced by any other entity, according to a statement by the Jordanian Foreign Ministry.

He stressed that the investigation conducted by an independent committee confirmed that UNRWA has all the tools to ensure that its actions adhere to all principles, ethics, and charters of the United Nations.

“The accusations have been proven false and the attempt to politically assassinate UNRWA has failed,” said Safadi.

For his part, Lazzarini thanked Jordan for its support for the agency and its solidarity with Palestinian refugees.

Lazzarini stressed that despite all the international community’s calls, Israel invaded and attacked the southernmost Gaza city of Rafah on May 6, with half of Gaza’s population forced to flee.

He pointed out that the two main crossings in the south, Rafah Crossing, and Kerem Shalom Crossing, have turned into conflict zones, and there are currently no crossings to transport aid across the borders.

Lazzarini noted that “198 UNRWA employees were killed, 160 sites were completely or partially destroyed, and employees were arrested, tortured, and forced to confess to crimes they did not commit”.

Egypt demands opening of all Israeli crossings for aid

Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry stressed on Friday the need for Israel to open all land crossings between Israel and the Gaza Strip for full, safe, and unhindered access to humanitarian and relief aid into the war-torn area.

Shoukry made the remarks during a phone conversation with Sigrid Kaag, the United Nations Senior Humanitarian and Reconstruction Coordinator for Gaza, the Egyptian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

The top Egyptian diplomat and the UN official touched on the dangers of Israeli military operations in Rafah, as well as the Israeli control over the Palestinian side of the Rafah crossing.

They also stressed the need to ensure safe conditions for humanitarian aid to enter the Rafah crossing and end military operations in its vicinity.

Shoukry affirmed the importance of Israel respecting and protecting humanitarian workers, not targeting the headquarters of international relief agencies, as well as ensuring the access and freedom of movement of relief crews in the Gaza Strip.

On May 7, Israel’s military started “a precise counterterrorism operation” in Rafah and assumed “operational control” over the Rafah crossing in Gaza. Since then, the crossing has been blocked against the movement of travelers and trucks carrying aid to more than 2 million Palestinians in the enclave.

ALSO READ: US Presses Israel for Gaza Strategy Amid Conflict

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US military says Gaza Strip pier project is completed

Military leaders have said the deliveries of aid will begin slowly to ensure the system works. …reports Asian Lite News

The US military finished installing a floating pier for the Gaza Strip on Thursday, with officials poised to begin ferrying badly needed humanitarian aid into the enclave besieged over seven months of intense fighting in the Israel-Hamas war.

The final, overnight construction sets up a complicated delivery process more than two months after US President Joe Biden ordered it to help Palestinians facing starvation as food and other supplies fail to make it in as Israel recently seized the key Rafah border crossing in its push on that southern city on the Egyptian border.

Fraught with logistical, weather and security challenges, the maritime route is designed to bolster the amount of aid getting into the Gaza Strip, but it is not considered a substitute for far cheaper land-based deliveries that aid agencies say are much more sustainable. The boatloads of aid will be deposited at a port facility built by the Israelis just southwest of Gaza City and then distributed by aid groups.

US troops will not set foot in Gaza, American officials insist, though they acknowledge the danger of operating near the war zone.

Heavy fighting between Israeli troops and Palestinian militants on the outskirts of Rafah has displaced some 600,000 people, a quarter of Gaza’s population, UN officials say. Another 100,000 civilians have fled parts of northern Gaza now that the Israeli military has restarted combat operations there.

Pentagon officials said the fighting in Gaza wasn’t threatening the new shoreline aid distribution area, but they have made it clear that security conditions will be monitored closely and could prompt a shutdown of the maritime route, even just temporarily. Already, the site has been targeted by mortar fire during its construction and Hamas has threatened to target any foreign forces who “occupy” the Gaza Strip.

The “protection of US forces participating is a top priority. And as such, in the last several weeks, the United States and Israel have developed an integrated security plan to protect all the personnel who are working,” said Navy Vice Adm. Brad Cooper, a deputy commander at the US military’s Central Command. “We are confident in the ability of this security arrangement to protect those involved.”

Israeli forces will be in charge of security on the shore, but there are also two US Navy warships near the area in the eastern Mediterranean Sea, the USS Arleigh Burke and the USS Paul Ignatius. Both ships are destroyers equipped with a wide range of weapons and capabilities to protect American troops off shore and allies on the beach.

Aid agencies say they are running out of food in southern Gaza and fuel is dwindling, which will force hospitals to shut down critical operations and halt truck deliveries of aid. The United Nations and other agencies have warned for weeks that an Israel assault on Rafah, which is on the border with Egypt near the main aid entry points, would cripple humanitarian operations and cause a disastrous surge in civilian casualties.

More than 1.4 million Palestinians — half of Gaza’s population — have been sheltering in Rafah, most after fleeing Israel’s offensives elsewhere.

The first cargo ship loaded with 475 pallets of food left Cyprus last week to rendezvous with a US military ship, the Roy P. Benavidez, which is off the coast of Gaza. The pallets of aid on the MV Sagamore were moved onto the Benavidez. The Pentagon said moving the aid between ships was an effort to be ready so it could flow quickly once the pier and the causeway were installed.

The installation of the pier several miles (kilometers) off the coast and of the causeway, which is now anchored to the beach, was delayed for nearly two weeks because of bad weather and high seas. The sea conditions made it too dangerous for US and Israeli troops to secure the causeway to the shore and do other final assembly work, US officials said.

According to a defense official, the Sagamore’s initial shipment was estimated to provide enough to feed 11,000 people for one month. The official spoke on the condition of anonymity to provide details not yet made public.

Military leaders have said the deliveries of aid will begin slowly to ensure the system works. They will start with about 90 truckloads of aid a day through the sea route, and that number will quickly grow to about 150 a day. But aid agencies say that isn’t enough to avert impending famine in Gaza and must be just one part of a broader Israeli effort to open land corridors.

Biden used his State of the Union address on March 7 to order the military to set up a temporary pier off the coast of Gaza, establishing a sea route to deliver food and other aid. Food shipments have been backed up at land crossings amid Israeli restrictions and intensifying fighting.

Under the new sea route, humanitarian aid is dropped off in Cyprus where it will undergo inspection and security checks at Larnaca port. It is then loaded onto ships — mainly commercial vessels — and taken about 200 miles (320 kilometers) to the large floating pier built by the US military off the Gaza coast.

There, the pallets are transferred onto trucks, driven onto smaller Army boats and then shuttled several miles (kilometers) to the floating causeway, which has been anchored onto the beach by the Israeli military. The trucks, which are being driven by personnel from another country, will go down the causeway into a secure area on land where they will drop off the aid and immediately turn around and return to the boats.

Aid groups will collect the supplies for distribution on shore, with the UN working with the US Agency for International Development to set up the logistics hub on the beach.

Sabrina Singh, Pentagon spokeswoman, told reporters that the project will cost at least $320 million, including the transportation of the equipment and pier sections from the United States to the coast of Gaza, as well as the construction and aid delivery operations.

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Top Biden official doubts Israel can achieve ‘total victory’ in Gaza

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has repeatedly vowed to achieve “total victory” against Hamas…reports Asian Lite News

The Biden administration does not see it likely or possible that Israel will achieve “total victory” in defeating Hamas in the Palestinian enclave of Gaza, US Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell said on Monday.

While US officials have urged Israel to help devise a clear plan for the governance post-war Gaza, Campbell’s comments are the clearest to date from a top US official effectively admitting that Israel’s current military strategy won’t bring the result that it is aiming for.

“In some respects, we are struggling over what the theory of victory is,” Campbell said at a NATO Youth Summit in Miami. “Sometimes when we listen closely to Israeli leaders, they talk about mostly the idea of….a sweeping victory on the battlefield, total victory,” he said.

“I don’t think we believe that that is likely or possible and that this looks a lot like situations that we found ourselves in after 9/11, where, after civilian populations had been moved and lots of violence that…the insurrections continue.”

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has repeatedly vowed to achieve “total victory” against Hamas, the Palestinian militant group that attacked Israel on Oct. 7 and killed 1,200 people and took 250 others hostage.

In response, Israel unleashed a relentless assault on the Gaza Strip, killing more than 35,000 people, according to the figures of the Gazan health ministry, and reducing the densely populated tiny enclave to a wasteland.

Campbell’s comments come as Washington is warning Israel not to go ahead with a major military offensive in Rafah, the southernmost city of the Gaza Strip where over a million people who have already been displaced by Israeli attacks are taking shelter.

Likening the situation in Gaza to that of a recurring insurgency that the United States faced in Afghanistan and Iraq after its invasions there following the Sept. 11 attacks, Campbell said a political solution was required.

“I think we view that there has to be more of a political solution…What’s different from the past in that sense, many countries want to move toward a political solution in which the rights of Palestinians are more respected,” he said.

“I don’t think it’s ever been more difficult than right now,” he added.

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