A BREAK IN THE SIEGE

Israel Allows Humanitarian Aid Into Gaza After Biden Push

The announcement came hours into President Joe Biden’s visit on Wednesday.

Israel announced Wednesday that it will allow limited quantities of humanitarian aid from Egypt to enter Southern Gaza—a brief break in a 10-day siege. The office of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the decision was reached after President Joe Biden, who arrived in Tel Aviv on Wednesday, specifically requested the aid be permitted. Netanyahu’s office said its forces “will not thwart” deliveries of food, water or medicine, as long as they are delivered strictly to civilians in the south of the Gaza Strip. It’s not clear when the aid will officially be cleared to flow in, but the announcement comes a day after hundreds of Palestinians were killed in a blast at a Gaza hospital. Hamas and Israel have blamed each other for the devastating explosion. Aid has been stationed at the Rafah border crossing of Egypt for days, the Associated Press reported, but Israeli airstrikes have prevented supplies from entering Gaza.