Israel announces 'tactical pause' in Gaza to allow aid to starving
July 27 (UPI) -- Israel announced Sunday it would take a "tactical pause" in fighting to allow aid delivery to Gaza after 25 countries issued a joint statement saying the war "must end now."
The Israel Defense Forces said it would implement "humanitarian corridors" for safe movement of United Nations aid trucks and "humanitarian pauses." The pause would affect densely populated areas in Gaza.
The pause is to be in effect from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. in Al-Mawasi, Deir al-Balah and Gaza City. The IDF said it would continue daily until further notice. More routes will be in place between 6 a.m. and 11 p.m. for the trucks. The IDF is "prepared to expand the scale of this activity as required."
The tactical pause is to allow more aid to starving people. Many non-governmental organizations have stopped delivering aid because they were unable to get through.
The IDF said the pause in fighting would "refute the false claim of deliberate starvation in the Gaza Strip."
The Egyptian Red Crescent said the convoy from Egypt had more than 100 aid trucks with more than 1,200 tons of food, NBC reported.
A dozen people trying to reach the aid were killed in attacks by the IDF Sunday. A hospital in Gaza said Sunday that it had received 12 bodies, CNN reported. Four of them were children, and one was a woman. There were 100 injured when the IDF fired near an aid point operated by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation.
It's unclear if it happened before or after the tactical pause began at 10 a.m. local time or if the area was included in the pause.
Nearly 90 children have recently died of starvation in the region.
The uncle of 10-year-old Noor Ashraf Abu Selaa who died of starvation, spoke out against the Israeli aid blockade.
Noor had been "a lively girl and she became like this because of hunger, thirst and the siege - the siege imposed on us by the Israelis," her uncle Ghazi Abu Selaa told CNN.
"Doctors are here, but there is no medicine. No milk. No food," he said.
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