Israel “has more or less accepted the six-week truce agreement in Gaza” and “the ball is now in Hamas' court.” A senior White House official said this during a phone call with a small group of journalists, as reported Policy. Today, the United States began launching humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip via military aircraft. In the afternoon, three C-130s from the Star and Stripes Air Force parachuted 66 packages containing approximately 38,000 meals into the Palestinian enclave. The senior US official called the action a “success” and “an important test to demonstrate that we can do this again in the days and weeks to come.” President Joe Biden's intention is to significantly increase the frequency of these actions, with the possibility of acting not only by air but also by sea. “The amount of aid arriving in Gaza is far from sufficient and we will continue to do everything we can to increase it,” the US president wrote in a message on X.
The controversy over the “massacre of despair”
As attempts to reach a truce agreement continue, accusations continue between Hamas and Israel over the episode in which more than 100 Palestinians died gathered around a truck waiting to receive humanitarian aid in Gaza. Today, Daniel Hagari, military spokesman for the Tel Aviv army, called claims that Israeli soldiers intentionally attacked the convoy and killed the people “totally unfounded.” “We have all the necessary materials to carry out the investigation and clarify the truth. The results will then be presented,” announced Hagari. Tel Aviv insists that the more than 100 casualties were caused by the crowds that formed around the aid truck. But according to certain journalists present on site, as well as several international newspapers, it was a few shots from the Israeli army which created the panic and, consequently, the crowd which led to the tragedy.
Cover photo: EPA/Mohammed Saber | A little girl observes what remains of the Al Bokhari mosque after an Israeli air raid (Deir Al Balah, Gaza Strip, March 2, 2024)
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