US secretary of state calls for more humanitarian aid into war-torn Gaza

By Ahmed Asmar

ANKARA (AA) – US Secretary of State Antony Blinken called Wednesday for getting more humanitarian aid into the war-torn Gaza Strip.

"We have seen clear and demonstrable progress in getting more assistance into Gaza, but more needs to be done," said Blinken, who arrived in Israel on the last stop of a regional tour to push for a cease-fire deal in the Palestinian enclave.

"We are pressing to make sure aid is actually getting to people in an effective way, and that it includes more than just food — water, sanitation, medical supplies," he added.

On Monday, a Pentagon spokesperson said that a temporary pier being constructed off Gaza’s coast for delivering humanitarian aid will be operational in May.

Blinken had already visited Saudi Arabia and Jordan as part of his current regional tour.

Israel has waged an unrelenting offensive on the Palestinian enclave since a cross-border attack by Hamas last Oct. 7 which killed some 1,200 people.

More than 34,500 Palestinians have since been killed, mostly women and children, and thousands injured amid mass destruction and severe shortages of necessities.

Israel has also imposed a crippling siege on the seaside enclave, leaving most of its population, particularly residents of northern Gaza, on the verge of starvation.

More than six months into the Israeli war, vast swathes of Gaza lay in ruins, pushing 85% of the enclave’s population into internal displacement amid a crippling blockade of food, clean water and medicine, according to the UN.

Israel is accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice. An interim ruling in January ordered Tel Aviv to stop genocidal acts and take measures to guarantee that humanitarian assistance is provided to civilians in Gaza.