Middle East: 25 countries call for end to Gaza war

Philippe Lazzarini, the head of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), described the aid distribution scheme of a rival organization as a "sadistic death trap."

"The so called Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) distribution schemes is a sadistic death trap," Lazzarini wrote is a post on X. "Snipers open fire randomly on crowds as if they are given a licence to kill. A massive hunt of people, in total impunity."

Recently, an Israeli and US-backed rival aid group called the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) began operating in the Gaza Strip. However, there have been widespread media reports of Israeli attacks on people waiting in line for aid.

Although the foundation has repeatedly denied the reports, the UN claims that hundreds of people have died at GHF distribution stations since the end of May.

Israel implemented a new distribution system, saying that its purpose was to prevent Hamas from seizing aid supplies.

Germany's Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul said on X that he spoke with the Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar on the phone today and expressed his greatest concern about the  "catastrophic humanitarian situation, especially in light of the expansion of the Israeli offensive in Gaza."

Wadephul also called on Israel to implement the agreements with the EU to facilitate humanitarian aid.

Regarding the situation in Syria, the German minister said that "we agreed that the ceasefire must now be stabilized to prevent unrest from spilling over into neighboring countries."

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres expressed deep alarm at the rapidly worsening humanitarian crisis in Gaza, warning that "the last lifelines keeping people alive are collapsing," his spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said in a statement.

"He deplores the growing reports of children and adults suffering from malnutrition," the statement read.

"The Secretary-General strongly condemns the ongoing violence, including the shooting, killing, and injuring of people attempting to get food for their families," Dujarric said.

The statement emphasized that the new evacuation order in parts of Deir al-Balah, where Israel began a ground offensive on Monday, is pushing people into more desperate conditions, causing further displacement, and restricting the United Nations’ ability to deliver life-saving aid.

"UN staff remain in Deir al-Balah, and two UN guesthouses have also been struck, despite parties having been informed of the locations of UN premises, which are inviolable," according to the statement.

Israel rejects the joint statement published by a group of countries, saying "it is disconnected from reality and sends the wrong message to Hamas". 

Twenty-five countries including Britain, France, and a host of European nations said the war in Gaza "must end now" and
Israel "must comply with international law."

The Israeli Foreign Ministry blamed Hamas as "the sole party responsible for the continuation of the war and the suffering on both sides". It also added that "at these sensitive moments in the ongoing negotiations, it is better to avoid statements of this kind."

Authorities in Belgium said that they had held and questioned two Israeli citizens who attended an electronic music festival, after pro-Palestinian groups accused them of war crimes.

In a statement reported on by The Associated Press, the Israeli Foreign Ministry said an Israeli citizen and an Israeli soldier who were on vacation in Belgium "were taken in yesterday for interrogation and were released shortly afterward."

Belgian prosecutors said they received legal complaints alleging that two Israeli soldiers responsible for "serious violations of international humanitarian law" in Gaza were seen at the Tomorrowland festival — the electronic dance music event which is one of the biggest in the world — near Antwerp last week.

The Belgian federal prosecutor's office said it had "asked the police to locate the two people named in the complaint and to interview them." They were released following the interviews, according to a statement.

Twenty-five countries including Britain, France and a host of European nations said the war in Gaza "must end now" and
Israel "must comply with international law."

The foreign ministries of countries including Australia, Canada and Japan condemned "the drip feeding of aid and the inhumane killing of civilians" seeking food.

The statement comes after the Health Ministry in Gaza said at least 80 people were killed on Sunday as Israeli forces opened fire on a crowd of Palestinians who were attempting to acquire food in northern Gaza.

"The suffering of civilians in Gaza has reached new depths," UK Foreign Minister David Lammy posted on X. "We need an immediate ceasefire, release of all hostages and a full resumption of aid."

In addition to Britain, France, Australia, Canada and Japan, the foreign ministries of Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, The Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland are also on the statement.

"The Israeli government's aid delivery model is dangerous, fuels instability and deprives Gazans of human dignity," the statement read.

"Proposals to remove the Palestinian population into a "humanitarian city" are completely unacceptable. Permanent forced displacement is a violation of international humanitarian law," it said.

Ceasefire talks between Israel and Hamas have been taking place in Qatar. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has repeatedly asserted that expanding Israel's military operations in Gaza will put pressure on Hamas during negotiations.

Abeer Al Ghussein was born and raised in Gaza. Like many female journalists in the region, she has faced numerous setbacks in her attempts to build a journalism career. With her participation in the EHNA project, a six-month training program by Nisaa FM and DW Akademie, she hopes to challenge the status quo.

The UN food agency has accused Israel of using tanks and snipers to fire on a crowd of Palestinians who were attempting to reach a convoy of trucks carrying food, in what the territory's Health Ministry described as one of the deadliest days for aid-seekers in over 21 months of war.

The World Food Program condemned the violence that erupted in northern Gaza.

"As the convoy approached, the surrounding crowd came under fire from Israeli tanks, snipers and other gunfire," WFP said in a statement, which was also posted on X and its website.

The incident resulted in the loss of "countless lives" with many more suffering "life-threatening injuries."

"These people were simply trying to access food to feed themselves and their families on the brink of starvation. This terrible incident underscores the increasingly dangerous conditions under which humanitarian operations are forced to be conducted in Gaza."

The Health Ministry in Gaza said at least 80 people were killed in the incident.

The Israeli military said it fired warning shots "to remove an immediate threat," but disputed the high death toll.

Israel said its forces struck Yemen's Hodeida port on Monday as it continues to carry out attacks on Houthi-held areas.

These Israeli military attacks included one on Hodeida earlier this month. This came alongside repeated missile and drone attacks from Yemen's Houthi rebels, a militant group which claims to act in solidarity with Palestinians.

On Monday, the Israeli military "struck terror targets of the Houthi terror regime at the port of Hodeida and is forcefully enforcing the prevention of any attempt to restore the previously attacked terror infrastructure," Defence Minister Israel Katz said in a statement.

"Yemen's fate will be the same as Tehran's," Katz added, in what seemed to be a reference to the recent 12-day conflict between Israel and Iran in which Israel attacked Iranian military and nuclear sites, as well as targets in the capital.

The Israeli army expanded its operations, including a ground offensive, on Monday in the city of Deir al-Balah in the center of the Gaza Strip.

It is the first time Israel has launched a ground offensive in Deir al-Balah in the 21 months since it began its attacks in the region in the wake of the October 7, 2023 attacks.

On Sunday, the Israeli military warned of imminent action against Hamas fighters in the area. An army spokesman called on residents to leave the area in a post in Arabic on X.

The Israeli military continues "to operate with intensity to eliminate terrorists and to dismantle terrorist infrastructure in the area and is expanding its activities into new areas," the army said in a statement. "For your safety, immediately evacuate southward toward Al-Mawasi."

Situated in the southwest of the embattled area, Al-Mawasi was designated by Israel as a "humanitarian zone" earlier in the war. However, Israel has since attacked there multiple times, with its military saying it was targeting Hamas facilities.

Meanwhile, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) warned the mass displacement order had dealt "yet another devastating blow" to the Gaza Strip.

Initial estimates indicated that between 50,000 and 80,000 people were in the area when Sunday's order was given, including some
30,000 people sheltering in 57 displacement sites, OCHA said in a statement.

Israel has launched a ground offensive in Deir al-Balah, a city in central Gaza.

This comes after the Israeli military warned of imminent action against Hamas fighters in the area and issued evacuation orders.

Follow along as DW brings you the latest reports, explainers and analysis on developments across the Middle East.