Pressure builds on Israel to allow Gaza aid

A day after President Joe Biden said Israel had agreed to allow some aid to Gaza, the focus turned Thursday to how soon food and medicine could get in as Israel prepares a possible invasion.

Palestinians in Gaza, already living under a blockade by Israel and Egypt, have been increasingly desperate since Israel responded to Hamas’ brutal Octpber 7 terrorist attack with airstrikes and a “complete siege” of the enclave. Nearly half the population has been displaced, according to the United Nations, and dwindling essential resources threaten disaster for its more than 2 million residents.

Adding to pressure on Israel to ease the crisis in Gaza, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak of Britain visited Tel Aviv, Israel, and said, after meeting with President Isaac Herzog that they had “agreed on the importance of getting urgent humanitarian support to ordinary Palestinians in Gaza who are also suffering.”

Previous reports of imminent agreements to ease the backup at Gaza’s border with Egypt — both for people and aid — have failed to materialize. Egypt said it would allow 20 aid trucks into the enclave, according to Biden, but the timing is unclear.

Biden is scheduled to give a prime time address from the Oval Office on Thursday about the war and is expected to request $100 billion for Israel, Ukraine and other crises from Congress by the end of the week. The decision to link aid for Ukraine to aid for Israel reflects the urgency of both wars — and a calculation about Republican support.

Here’s what else you need to know:

— Israel’s northern border with Lebanon remained tense as Hezbollah and the Israeli military continued clashes there. With Israel threatening a ground invasion of Gaza, many in the region fear that the fighting with Hezbollah, an ally of Hamas, could also escalate into a war involving Lebanon, too.

— Israel’s military said it had been contact with the families of 203 people taken hostage by Hamas, raising by four the number of people believed to be held by the group in Gaza. The military also said it had caught a fighter from Hamas trying to return to Gaza, leaving open the possibility that others were still in Israel. Daniel Hagari, a military spokesperson, said soldiers would “continue combing the area” for other members of the group.

— Seven Palestinians were killed in the West Bank over the past day, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry, including one who was shot dead by settlers during an attack on a Palestinian village. The remaining six were killed by Israeli forces during overnight raids, the ministry said.

— There were sporadic protests in Europe and in some Arab nations for a second night over the deadly explosion at a Gaza hospital Tuesday.