Gaza Strip
\nThe death toll in Gaza has topped 4,000 as residents endure the worsening humanitarian situation that awaits entry of aid that has been stocked at Egypt\u2019s Rafah border for days.
\nUnited Nations (UN) Secretary-General Antonio Guterres reached the Rafah border in Egypt on Friday in an effort to start delivering humanitarian supplies to Gaza but it was not immediately apparent when the supplies would enter Gaza.
\nIsrael has relentlessly carried out air strikes in Gaza resulting in a massive loss of innocent lives.
\nGaza\u2019s health ministry spokesperson Ashraf al-Qudra, while speaking at a press briefing on Friday, revealed that 4,137 Palestinians have been martyred so far in Israeli attacks on Gaza including 1,661 children.
\nThere are 13,260 people wounded and more than 4,000 people missing, al-Qudra said.
\n\u201cOperations are being done on the floor, on the ground, in the corridors of the hospital.\u201d
\nThe United States indicated that negotiations were still ongoing over specifics of an agreement to provide supplies via the Rafah crossing that connects Gaza and Sinai.
\nThe US claimed earlier that an agreement has been reached for the first 20 aid trucks to be sent into Gaza, but UN officials emphasise the need for the delivery to be done at scale and in a sustained way.
\nPrior to the current conflict between Israel and Hamas, approximately 450 aid trucks arrived daily in Gaza.
\nThe majority of Gaza\u2019s 2.3 million residents are dependent on humanitarian supplies, which have been blocked by Israel and Egypt.
\nIsrael\u2019s siege of Gaza, a response to Hamas\u2019 incursion, has worsened the humanitarian crisis in the Palestinian enclave.
\nAid delivery efforts have been complicated by the need for inspection mechanisms and a push for the evacuation of foreign passport holders from Gaza.
\nA UN official said more than 200 trucks of aid were ready to move from Sinai to Gaza.
\nIsrael has said it will allow no aid to enter its territory, Kerem Shalom crossing, until Hamas releases the hostages it took during its October 7 attack.
\nIt has said aid can enter through Egypt\u2019s Rafah crossing \u2014 the only crossing that does not border Israel \u2014 as long as it does not end up in the hands of Hamas.
\nEgypt is hesitant to accept mass Gazans\u2019 displacement into Sinai, fearing Palestinians could flee or be forced from their homes, similar to the war surrounding Israel\u2019s creation.
\nThe country is also concerned about security in northeastern Sinai, where it faces an escalating insurgency, and the risk of spillover from Hamas-controlled Gaza.
\nBiden to seek billions in military aid for Israel
\nUS President Joe Biden began a new mission on Thursday urging Americans that billions more should be spent on aiding Israel and Ukraine in their battles since only US intervention can avert world catastrophe.
\n\u201cAmerican leadership is what holds the world together. American alliances are what keep us, America, safe,\u201d said Biden.
\nBiden attempted to establish a connection between Russian President Vladimir Putin, whose forces invaded Ukraine in February 2022, and Hamas fighters in the Gaza Strip who attacked Israel.
\n\u201cHamas and Putin represent different threats, but they share this in common: They both want to annihilate a neighbouring democracy,\u201d he said.
\nAccording to sources, Biden plans to request $100 billion in new spending, including $60 billion for Ukraine and $14 billion for Israel. The request also includes $10 billion for humanitarian aid in Gaza, $14 billion for border security, and $7 billion for the Indo-Pacific region.
\nAdditionally, half of the $60 billion for Ukraine will be used for replacing and modernising US weapons stocks.
\nBiden spoke about 20 hours after returning from a whirlwind trip to Israel to show US solidarity after the October 7 attack by Hamas fighters who launched incursions from Gaza and killed 1,400 people in southern Israel.
\nIn Gaza, over 3,900 Palestinians have been martyred \u2014 a vast majority being children and women \u2014 while more than 14,000 have been injured.
\nBiden maintained an urgency in his message as Israel prepares to launch a ground offensive against Hamas fighters in Gaza, and tensions are high following a deadly blast at a hospital, resulting in thousands of Palestinian martyrs.
\nBiden said Israel was not responsible for the hospital blast, as Hamas officials had asserted, and said:
\n\u201cWe can\u2019t ignore the humanity of innocent Palestinians who only want to live in peace and have opportunity.\u201d
\nIn response to Hamas, Biden encouraged Israelis not to succumb to \u201cblind rage\u201d as international outcry over the attacks on Gaza grows.
\nThe money would \u201csharpen Israel\u2019s qualitative edge\u201d and strengthen its military capabilities, Biden said.
\nHe said US national security required it to support \u201ccritical partners\u201d like Israel. \u201cIt\u2019s a smart investment that\u2019s gonna pay dividends for American security for generations,\u201d Biden said.
\nOn the ground in the Gaza Strip, Israel appeared to be getting closer to a full-scale invasion of the seaside enclave ruled by Hamas. The Israeli military massed troops and equipment near the Gaza border.
\n\u201cYou see Gaza now from a distance, you will soon see it from inside. The command will come,\u201d Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant told troops gathered at the Gaza border on Thursday.
\nFollowing his address, the Republican National Committee charged Biden with appeasing Iran, saying: \u201cBiden could BEGIN holding the Iranian regime accountable by vigorously enforcing oil sanctions, and by reversing course on his appeasement policies that have enriched them with tens of billions of dollars.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Gaza Strip The death toll in Gaza has topped 4,000 as residents endure the worsening humanitarian situation that awaits entry of aid that has been stocked at Egypt\u2019s Rafah border for days. United Nations (UN) Secretary-General Antonio Guterres reached the Rafah border in Egypt on Friday in an effort to start delivering humanitarian supplies to […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":362917,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-362898","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world"},"yoast_head":"\n