- By Max Matza and Christy Cooney
- BBC News
March 1, 2024
Updated 4 hours ago
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Two boys were seen amid the rubble of a collapsed house in Gaza on Friday
US President Joe Biden has said he hopes to reach an agreement on a ceasefire in the Israel-Gaza war in time for the start of Ramadan.
The Muslim holy month, during which members of the faith fast from dawn to sunset, begins on March 10 or 11.
Asked if he expected a deal by then, Mr. Biden said: “I hope so. We’re still working really hard on it.”
This comes amid tense ceasefire negotiations and as pressure grows on Mr Biden to help contain the conflict.
A proposed deal would include a 40-day pause in all military operations from the start of Ramadan as well as an increased flow of aid to Gaza, a source close to the talks told Portal.
It would also reportedly include an agreement to release Palestinian prisoners in exchange for Israeli hostages at a ratio of 10 to one.
The exact start of Ramadan is marked by the first sighting of the crescent moon and can therefore vary from place to place.
Calls for action to ease Gaza's humanitarian crisis grew louder on Thursday after more than 100 people were killed as crowds swarmed aid trucks delivering food.
Hamas, which rules Gaza, accused Israel of firing on civilians, but Israel said most died in a stampede after it fired warning shots.
After the incident, President Biden announced plans to airdrop aid to Gaza, saying: “Innocent people were caught in a terrible war and unable to feed their families. And you saw the reaction when they tried to get help.”
“But we must do more, and the United States will do more.”
According to the UN, around a quarter of Gaza's population is currently at risk of famine, but the planned air drops are criticized by aid organizations as costly and inadequate.
“Oxfam does not support U.S. airdrops into Gaza, which would serve primarily to assuage the guilty consciences of senior U.S. officials whose policies contribute to ongoing atrocities and the threat of famine in Gaza,” the charity group said Friday.
“While Palestinians in Gaza have been pushed to the absolute brink, sending a paltry, token amount of aid to Gaza without a plan for its safe distribution would be unhelpful and deeply humiliating for Palestinians,” said Oxfam, adding that the U.S. should instead work to “stop the flow of arms to Israel.”
The U.N. agency's chief, Philippe Lazzarini, said the airdrops were “a last resort, an extraordinarily expensive way to deliver aid” and not the answer to Gaza's problems.
“The real answer is: open the border crossings and bring convoys and medical aid into Gaza,” he added.
John Kirby, spokesman for the White House National Security Council, said the US would continue to work to bring aid to Gaza, including by land and sea.
On Thursday, Jordanian Air Force pilots dropped 33 tons of medical supplies and food into Gaza.
According to the Washington Post, Jordanian planes have also dropped aid provided by the US and Britain, while planes from France, Egypt and the United Arab Emirates have taken part in similar operations.
The Israeli military launched a large-scale air and ground campaign to destroy Hamas – which is banned as a terrorist organization by Israel, Britain and others – after the group's gunmen killed about 1,200 people in southern Israel on October 7 and returned 253 there Gaza as hostages.