Israel’s ultranationalist minister Ben-Gvir say ‘no aid’, only ‘pressure’ for Gaza
Israel’s far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir said there will be no ceasefire deal with Hamas and no humanitarian aid will enter the war-torn enclave where some two million people are facing starvation.
Posting on social media, Ben-Gvir said “Hamas will not set conditions”.
“It will surrender to them,” he said.
“No deal, no ceasefire, no aid – just continued fighting until [Hamas] are defeated in Gaza,” he wrote.
Ben-Gvir also called for increasing the “pressure” as aid agencies warn that conditions for the survival of Palestinians in Gaza are deteriorating due to a nearly 50-day blockade by Israeli forces on all humanitarian supplies – including food, medicine, fuel and water – from entering the war-torn enclave.
“Exert all the power and might – until Hamas begs on its knees. Until complete victory,” Ben-Gvir wrote, a day after Israel’s defence minister said it was a state policy to starve Gaza in order to force Hamas to capitulate.
WFP warns of acute hunger risk for hundreds of thousands in Gaza
The World Food Programme (WFP) has issued an urgent warning about the deteriorating humanitarian situation in Gaza, saying hundreds of thousands of residents face an acute risk of hunger.
“Two million people in Gaza, most of them displaced and without income, rely entirely on food assistance,” the WFP stated in a post on X. “As stocks dwindle and borders remain closed, Gaza needs food now.”
Two million people in #Gaza - most of them displaced and without income - rely entirely on food assistance.
As stocks dwindle and borders remain closed, Gaza needs food now. pic.twitter.com/YpviuVJklR
— World Food Programme (@WFP) April 18, 2025
Haaretz: Israel must stop starving Gaza
In an editorial titled “Israel must stop starving Gaza”, Haaretz said “Israel’s starvation of more than two million Palestinians has been fully normalised.
“This policy is based on a populist and false narrative that links humanitarian aid for Gazans to Hamas’ military capabilities. The result is a continuing humanitarian crime,” it wrote, adding that starvation had “become an openly declared policy and even a source of pride”.
On March 18, Israeli authorities blocked the entry of desperately needed humanitarian aid once again. The blockade is currently ongoing.
Haaretz argued that the suffering and death caused by Israel’s policy of starvation in Gaza “don’t advance any of the war’s objectives” and the deaths of children due to malnutrition and disease “won’t lead to the release of the hostages or the downfall of Hamas”.
