Closure of Gaza crossing points heightens tensions after Israel suspends humanitarian aid

Hamas accused of violating ceasefire agreement committing Israel to let in 600 trucks daily

A famine was declared in and around Gaza City by the UN-backed Integrated Food Security Phase Classification in August after a previous blockade of aid deliveries. Photograph:
A famine was declared in and around Gaza City by the UN-backed Integrated Food Security Phase Classification in August after a previous blockade of aid deliveries. Photograph:

Crossing points into Gaza for aid convoys were closed on Sunday after the Israeli government accused Hamas of violating a ceasefire agreement.

The agreement had committed Israel to let in 600 trucks carrying aid into Gaza every day.

It had halved the amount as it accused Hamas of violating the agreement by failing to return all the deceased hostages in time.

It also refused to reopen the key border crossing of Rafah, the only access point that is not exclusively controlled by Israel.

A famine was declared in and around Gaza City by the UN-backed Integrated Food Security Phase Classification in August after a previous blockade of aid deliveries.

The Israeli military said on Sunday that air force fighter jets carried out air strikes in Gaza’s Rafah area to remove a threat after “terrorists” opened fire on troops.

It said the militants’ actions blatantly “violated” the ceasefire agreement, adding that the military would respond firmly.

Several Israeli media outlets reported later that Israel would also suspend the delivery of aid into Gaza “until further notice”.

The Rafah crossing is the only one that was not controlled by Israel before the war. It has been closed since May 2024, when Israel took control of the Gaza side.

A fully reopened crossing would make it easier for Palestinians to seek medical treatment, travel or visit family in Egypt, home to tens of thousands of Palestinians.

Israeli prime minister Binyamin Netanyahu instructed Israel’s security chiefs to “take firm action against terror targets in the Gaza Strip” after attacks in Rafah on Sunday.

Mr Netanyahu issued the order during a meeting with defence minister Israel Katz and the heads of the Shin Bet, the domestic security agency, and the Mossad (foreign intelligence), the office said.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) reported that Palestinian militants fired rocket-propelled grenades and sniper rounds at troops operating in the Rafah area of southern Gaza. In response, the IDF said it carried out a series of air strikes on “terror targets” in the enclave.

A senior Hamas official said the Palestinian militant group remains committed to the ceasefire, which he accused Israel of repeatedly violating.

Hamas’s armed wing said on Sunday that it has located the body of a hostage, which it said will be delivered to Israel on Sunday if field conditions are appropriate.

The group said any Israeli “escalation” would hinder search operations, shortly after Israel said it launched its air strikes and artillery fire at targets in southern Gaza.

Israel identified the body of a dead hostage, after Hamas handed over two bodies of what the militant group said were deceased hostages to the Red Cross late on Saturday.

Mr Netanyahu said the body was identified as Ronen Engel. The second body was still undergoing identification at Israel’s National Institute of Forensic Medicine.

Mr Engel (54) was killed during the October 7th attack on Kibbutz Nir Oz on the Gaza border. His wife, Karina, and two of his three children were kidnapped and released in a ceasefire in November 2023.

Hamas has handed over the remains of 11 identified hostages. Israel has returned the bodies of 135 Palestinians to Gaza.

The handover of remains is among key points – along with aid deliveries into Gaza and the devastated territory’s future – in the ceasefire process meant to end two years of war. – Guardian/AP

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