Israel violated ceasefire more than 900 times since 19 January, says Gaza govt. media office

The government media office in Gaza announced on Sunday that the Israeli army has committed more than 900 violations of the ceasefire agreement since it came into effect on 19 January, killing and wounding hundreds of Palestinians in various governorates across the Palestinian enclave, Anadolu has reported.

“These violations included aerial and artillery bombardment, intensive drone flights, preventing the entry of humanitarian aid, opening fire on citizens, demolishing homes and targeting cars,” explained the director general of the media office, Ismail Al-Thawabta. “Also included were the prevention of fuel entering Gaza, hindering the entry of civil defence vehicles and heavy machinery, and preventing the entry of 260,000 tents and caravans.”

Al-Thawabta called on the international community and mediators to put pressure on the Israeli occupation to stop its crimes and uphold its responsibilities in the ceasefire agreement.

Earlier on Sunday, the Palestinian Ministry of Health in Gaza announced that the total number of those killed since the ceasefire with Israel came into force on 19 January had risen to 116, with at least 490 wounded.

The Palestinian Ministry of Foreign Affairs warned on Sunday of the dangers of Israel preventing the entry of humanitarian aid into Gaza. Commenting on the Israeli government’s decision to block the entry of aid, it stressed its “rejection of politicising aid and using it as a means of blackmail, deepening the suffering of more than two million Palestinians, adding to their current state of suffering due to the genocidal war and displacement.”

The ministry also called on the international community and all parties to “commit to their responsibilities to force the Israeli government to allow aid into the Gaza Strip on a sustainable basis, and to prevent it from using the suffering of the Palestinians and hunger as a weapon to impose its political conditions.”

The Israeli government’s position on the ban on the entry of aid was criticised severely by the families of captives, as well as politicians. The leader of the Israeli opposition Democrats party, Yair Golan, said that the far-right regime in Israel was evading negotiations regarding the second phase of the ceasefire and prisoner swap deal.

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