Pressure is growing in Gaza. It's
growing in Israel. Pressure is growing
all over the world as people campaign
against Israel's continuing action in
Gaza. And this is why Gaza City has now
been declared a combat zone. The Israeli
strikes are intensifying, bringing
fatalities, injuries, and destruction.
The foreign secretary, David Lami, has
called for Israel to allow aid in. Today
he said the humanitarian situation in
Gaza remains catastrophic with famine in
Gaza city and women and girls bearing
the brunt of the suffering. The UK is
doing all we can to improve the
situation, but we remain crystal clear.
For aids to have impact, Israel must
ensure it is allowed in and delivered
safely and securely to civilians in
desperate need. We need an immediate
ceasefire, the release of all hostages,
a surge in aid, and a framework to
deliver long-term peace. He has
announced additional aid funding
including3 million pounds to support
midwives in Gaza via the UN sexual and
reproductive health agency. As well as
this, the foreign office is working with
Oxfam to distribute menstrual hygiene
products which can be used with limited
access to clean water.
All of this though will be impeded if
the government of Israel doesn't support
the distribution of aid. Israel says
that Gaza City is a Hamas stronghold and
alleges that a tunnel network remains in
use there. The health authorities in
Gaza say the number of dead there since
the current conflict began has now
reached more than 63,000.
We can't confirm these figures and
Israel dispute them, but they are
considered to be the most accurate
numbers available.
In Gaza City, the flow of people leaving
for the south of the strip continues,
but there are more and more people
heading to smaller and smaller areas of
the territory, and there's no guarantee
of safety or aid when they get there.
David Harper, ITV News.
Meanwhile, Israel has identified the
name of a second hostage after they
recovered two bodies during an operation
in the Gaza Strip. 28-year-old Edan
Shivi had been volunteering as a
photographer at the Nova Music Festival
in Israel when he was kidnapped by Hamas
during the 7th of October attacks in
2023.