The White House said in a phone call with US President Joe Biden on Sunday that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had agreed to allow the “continuous flow” of international aid from Egypt to Gaza.
There was no immediate confirmation from the Israeli side, but Netanyahu’s office said last week that his war cabinet had agreed to allow humanitarian aid into Gaza via Egypt.
Twenty trucks carrying aid arrived on Saturday and about 15 more arrived on Sunday, the Israeli Defense Ministry previously confirmed.
The White House said Biden also “expressed his gratitude for Israel’s support in the release” of two American hostages released on Friday and discussed ongoing efforts to release the remaining hostages during the call with Netanyahu.
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The announcement was sharply criticized by National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir, a far-right member of the security cabinet.
“Any agreement on ‘continued assistance to Gaza’ that does not include the release of all our hostages is just a continuation of the concept that got us to where we are now,” wrote Ben Gvir on X.
“Humanitarian [aid] only in exchange for the release of all hostages,” he added.
In an apparent response to Ben Gvir, the Prime Minister’s Office reiterated that Israel would not provide aid to Gaza and would prevent uncontrolled shipments of goods from entering the Gaza Strip.
A truck carrying humanitarian aid for the Gaza Strip crosses the Rafah border gate in Rafah, Egypt, on October 22, 2023. (AP Photo/Mohammed Asad)
In addition to his conversation with Biden, Netanyahu held telephone conversations with French President Emmanuel Macron, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez and Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte on Sunday. Both Macron and Rutte are expected to travel to Israel on Tuesday.
Netanyahu’s office said that the prime minister emphasized in all conversations that Israel was “determined to eliminate Hamas’s military and governance capabilities” and that “Israel’s victory over Hamas would be a victory for the entire world.”
According to the White House, Biden meanwhile discussed the war between Israel and Hamas with leaders of major Western powers.
The call was attended by the leaders of Canada, France, Germany, Italy and the United Kingdom, who along with Biden issued a joint statement emphasizing their support for Israel’s right to defend itself against Hamas and at the same time calling on Jerusalem to protect the lives of civilians.
“The leaders reaffirmed their support for Israel and its right to defend itself against terrorism and called for compliance with international humanitarian law, including the protection of civilians,” said Biden, Macron, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and the Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and the British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak after a joint telephone conversation they had today.
The leaders “welcomed the release of two hostages and called for the immediate release of all remaining hostages.” They are committed to close coordination to support their nationals in the region, especially those wishing to leave Gaza,” it said Declaration organized by the USA.
It was the second joint statement of support for Israel that Biden has made with Western leaders since the war between Israel and Hamas broke out following the terrorist group’s devastating attack from Gaza on October 7.
“The leaders welcomed the announcement of the first humanitarian convoys to reach vulnerable Palestinians in Gaza and committed to continuing to coordinate with partners in the region to ensure sustained and safe access to food, water, medical supplies and others “To ensure assistance necessary to meet humanitarian needs.”
“The leaders committed to continuing close diplomatic coordination, including with key partners in the region, to prevent the spread of the conflict, maintain stability in the Middle East and work towards a political solution and lasting peace,” it said it further in the statement.
Photos of people killed, missing or kidnapped in the Hamas attack on Israel on October 7 will be displayed in empty seats in an exhibition themed “UNITE AGAINST TERRORISM” at Tel Aviv University’s Smolarz Auditorium on October 22. Exhibited in Tel Aviv in October 2023 Aviv. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)
Previously, the military’s liaison with the Palestinians confirmed that Israel had allowed humanitarian aid to enter Gaza via Egypt on Sunday at the request of the Biden administration.
“At the request of the American government and in accordance with instructions from the political level, United Nations humanitarian assistance containing only water, food and medical equipment was transferred today to the southern Gaza Strip through the Rafah border crossing in Egypt. “The Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT) said in a statement.
“All equipment was checked by Israeli security officials before entering the Gaza Strip,” COGAT added.
A defense source said Israel would allow the import of food, water and medical supplies – but not fuel – from Egypt into the southern Gaza Strip for Palestinian civilians in the area and those evacuated there as long as this was not the case the terrorist group Hamas.
“Any further supply attempt that is not coordinated and approved by Israel will be thwarted,” the source warned.
This aerial photo shows humanitarian aid trucks arriving at a camp in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip after crossing the Rafah border from Egypt on October 21, 2023. (Belal Al Sabbagh/AFP)
On Saturday, Israel also denied that aid entering the Gaza Strip had not been checked for weapons before it arrived.
Cargo planes and trucks have been bringing humanitarian aid to the Egyptian side of Rafah for days, but none had been delivered to Gaza as of Saturday.
During his solidarity visit to Israel on Wednesday, Biden pushed for the trucks to be allowed to travel to Gaza.
Biden had said the first 20 trucks would be a test of an aid distribution system without benefiting Hamas, with the U.N. agencies distributing aid on the Gaza side of the border, but warned that Hamas “wouldn’t let it go through or just confiscate it, then it’s over.”
Emanuel Fabian and agencies contributed to this report.