NEW YORK, United States: US President Joe Biden said Monday he hoped a ceasefire in Gaza Strip could start by the beginning of next week.
Visiting New York, president Biden was asked when a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas might start, and he answered, “My national security advisor tells me that we’re close, we’re close, we’re not done yet. My hope is by next Monday we’ll have a ceasefire.”
Israel has failed to comply with the United Nations’ top court’s order to provide urgently needed aid to desperate people in Gaza, Human Rights Watch said on Monday, a month after the ICJ landmark ruling ordered Israel to moderate its war.
In an initial response to a South African lawsuit accusing Israel of genocide, the United Nations High Court ordered Israel to do everything in its power to prevent death, destruction and any acts of genocide in the tiny Palestinian enclave. He ordered a halt to the military offensive that had caused a humanitarian disaster.
Israel denies these accusations and says it is fighting in self-defence.
Almost five months into the war, Israel is preparing to expand its ground operations into Rafah, Gaza’s southernmost city on the border with Egypt, where 1.4 million Palestinians seek safety.
Early Monday morning, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office announced that the military has submitted plans to the war cabinet for operations in Rafah and the evacuation of civilians from the war zone. No further details were provided.
Rafah’s situation has caused global concern. Israel’s allies have warned that civilians must be protected in the fight against the militant group Hamas.
Also on Monday, Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Shetiye tendered his resignation from the government, and President Mahmoud Abbas is expected to appoint a technocrat in line with US demands for internal reforms. The United States has called for the Palestinian Authority to be activated after the war to govern Gaza before the state is formed, a scenario Israel has rejected.
Citing United Nations statistics, Human Rights Watch reported that the daily average of aid trucks entering Gaza dropped by 30 percent in the weeks following the ICJ ruling. The report said there were an average of 93 trucks a day from January 27 to February 21, compared to 147 trucks a day in the three weeks before the ruling. Statistics show that the daily average dropped to 57 cases from February 9 to 21.
Human rights groups say Israel has not adequately facilitated fuel shipments to hard-hit northern Gaza, accusing Israel of preventing aid from reaching the north, where the World Food Programme is based.
