Israel Allows Limited Aid into Gaza After 11-Week Blockade

Israel has allowed a limited amount of humanitarian aid to enter Gaza after an 11-week blockade, a move the United Nations has criticized as inadequate given the scale of the ongoing humanitarian crisis. The blockade had severely restricted the flow of food, medicine, and fuel into the densely populated enclave, exacerbating the suffering of its 2.1 million residents.

Netanyahu said food deliveries would continue only until the Israeli military and private companies had set up hubs to distribute aid under a US-backed plan rejected by the UN.

He also declared that Israeli forces would "take control of all areas" of Gaza as part of the expanded ground offensive against Hamas that the Israeli military began on Sunday.

The UN described the partial easing of the blockade as merely a "drop in the ocean," emphasizing that the limited aid will do little to address the severe shortages facing the population. Aid groups have echoed this sentiment, calling for unrestricted humanitarian access to prevent further escalation of the crisis.