The leaders of France, Britain and Canada on Monday slammed Israel's "egregious actions" in Gaza, opposed its expanded offensive and aid blockage and condemned Israeli ministers for threatening the mass displacement of civilians. "We will not stand by" while the Netanyahu government pursues those actions, French President Emmanuel Macron, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said in a joint statement. Read our liveblog to see how the day's events unfolded.
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France, Britain, Canada condemn Israel's 'egregious actions' in Gaza
The leaders of Britain, France and Canada have condemned Israel's "egregious actions" in Gaza, opposed its expanded offensive and aid blockage, and slammed Israeli ministers for threatening the mass displacement of civilians.
"We will not stand by" while the government of Benjamin Netanyahu pursues those actions, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, French President Emmanuel Macron and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said in a joint statement.
Mechanisms to distribute aid in Gaza remain a problem
Israel says it will allow a limited amount of humanitarian aid into Gaza Monday. But reporting from Gaza, FRANCE 24's Noga Tarnopolsky says it's unclear if there are effective mechanisms to distribute the aid to the most needy inside the besieged Palestinian enclave.
First aid trucks entering Gaza 'a drop in the ocean', says UN aid chief
UN aid chief Tom Fletcher said Israel cleared nine trucks of aid on Monday to enter Gaza through the Keren Shalom crossing following 11 weeks of a complete blockade.
"But it is a drop in the ocean of what is urgently needed, and significantly more aid must be allowed into Gaza, starting tomorrow morning," Fletcher said in a statement.
"To reduce looting, there must be a regular flow of aid, and humanitarians must be permitted to use multiple routes. Commercial goods should complement the humanitarian response," he said.
Israeli military says five aid trucks entered Gaza
Israel's military has said five UN trucks carrying humanitarian aid, including food for babies, were allowed into Gaza via the Kerem Shalom crossing on Monday.
Earlier Monday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he was forced to agree to allow a limited amount of aid into the besieged Palestinian enclave due to international pressure.
Israel’s aid blockade on Gaza is ‘morally reprehensible’
As experts warn of famine in Gaza after nearly three months of an Israeli aid blockade, Oliver McTernan, an experienced conflict mediator and head of Forward Thinking, says Israel’s policies are “morally reprehensible”.
“I'm appalled by the lack of direct response from Europe,” said McTernan in an interview with FRANCE 24. “We can argue over the political or the legal niceties whether this is genocide or not. I think clearly what it is, it's something morally reprehensible.”
Israel will let baby food into Gaza Monday, first aid since March
Israel said it would begin letting trucks of baby food into the Gaza Strip on Monday, the first aid to be admitted since it announced the lifting of a total blockade imposed on March 2.
"Today, Israel is facilitating the entry of trucks with baby food into Gaza," foreign ministry director general Eden Bar Tal told reporters Monday.
"In the coming days, Israel will facilitate the entry of dozens of aid trucks."
Gaza rescuers say 52 killed in Israeli strikes on Monday
Gaza's civil defence agency said Israeli attacks on Monday killed at least 52 people, as the military pressed a newly intensified campaign in the war-ravaged territory.
"The Israeli bombardment on Gaza has continued since midnight and throughout the early morning hours, resulting in 52 martyrs," said civil defence spokesman Mahmud Bassal, adding that the bombing was ongoing in the afternoon and that Israeli forces had "expanded their ground operation".
EU's von der Leyen says aid must reach civilians in Gaza immediately
Ursula von der Leyen, the European Commission president, has said the humanitarian situation in Gaza was "unacceptable" and called for aid to reach civilians in the Palestinian territory immediately.
"For two months now, no humanitarian supplies have entered Gaza. Aid must reach civilians in need immediately and the blockade on Gaza must be lifted now," she told reporters during a visit to London.
UK's Starmer calls the situation in Gaza 'intolerable'
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer has called the situation in Gaza "intolerable", and said his government was working with allies to coordinate a response to the conflict.
"It's a really serious, unacceptable, intolerable situation, and that's why we are working intensely to coordinate with other leaders on how we respond to this," Starmer told reporters.
Starmer was speaking to reporters in London after signing a landmark trade and defence agreement with the EU.
UN humanitarian agency says 'in discussions' with Israel on resuming Gaza aid
Israel should be excluded from Eurovision says Spain's PM
The Eurovision song contest should exclude Israel, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said, expressing solidarity with "the people of Palestine who are experiencing the injustice of war and bombardment".
Russia did not participate in last weekend's Eurovision after its 2022 invasion of Ukraine, "therefore Israel shouldn't either, because what we cannot allow is double standards in culture", said Sanchez.
Ryanair 'running out of patience' with Tel Aviv security disruptions, says CEO
Ryanair Chief Executive Michael O'Leary said his airline was "running out of patience" with security disruptions at Tel Aviv's Ben Gurion Airport and may consider moving aircraft to service alternative destinations.
"I think we're running out of patience too with Israel... flights to and from Tel Aviv," O'Leary told analysts following the release of full-year results.
"If they're going to keep being disrupted by these security disruptions, frankly, we'd be better off sending those aircraft somewhere else in Europe," he said, adding that flights to Tel Aviv were currently halted until early June.
Israel continues 'extensive' Gaza ground operation
Israel says it hit '160 terror targets' in Gaza
Israel's military on Monday said the air force had struck "160 terror targets" in Gaza over the past day.
On Monday, there were heavy strikes in and around the main southern city of Khan Younis, where civil defence agency spokesman Mahmud Bassal said 11 people were killed and several others wounded.
Bassal reported another 11 deaths in strikes elsewhere.
In a post on Telegram, the Israeli military's Arab-language spokesman Avichay Adraee called on Gazans in Khan Younis and nearby areas to "evacuate immediately".
"From this moment, Khan Younis will be considered a dangerous combat zone," he said.
AFPTV footage from Khan Younis showed a helicopter over the city, and a vehicle carrying wounded people to a hospital.
Humanitarian aid waiting to enter Gaza
Cyprus said Monday it’s ready to ship tons food to the Israeli port of Ashdod for delivery to Gaza.
After a nearly three-month blockade and warnings by global experts of impeding famine, Israel says it will allow a limited amount of humanitarian aid into Gaza even as it launches “extensive” new ground operations there.
A Cyprus foreign ministry official said Monday some 600 tons of non-perishable food and shelter items remain in storage in the ports of Limassol and Larnaca.
The official said this could be dispatched by a chartered ship relatively quickly given Cyprus’ proximity to Israel. He spoke on condition of anonymity because he wasn’t authorized to speak about the issue publicly, AP reported.
Some 22,000 tons of aid were shipped to Gaza from Cyprus through a maritime corridor that was set up last year.
WHO chief says 'two million people are starving' in Gaza
The head of the World Health Organization said Monday that two million people were starving in the Gaza Strip while tonnes of food was being blocked at the border.
"Two million people are starving" while "tonnes of food is blocked at the border, just minutes away," Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told opening of the World Health Assembly in Geneva, adding: "The risk of famine in Gaza is increasing with the deliberate withholding of humanitarian aid."
Israel says resumption of aid in Gaza due to pressure from allies
Israel's Netanyahu said that the decision to resume aid to Gaza after a weekslong blockade came after global allies said they would not be able to grant Israel the support it needs to win the war so long as there were “images of hunger” coming out of the Palestinian territory.
Israel has faced condemnation from the United Nations, aid groups and some European allies for its blockade of goods into the war-ravaged territory, including food, fuel and medicine.
FRANCE 24 correspondent Noga Tarnopolsky reports from Jerusalem.
Israel's military orders the evacuation of Gaza's second-largest city
The Israeli army has told Gazans in the main southern city of Khan Younis and the nearby areas of Bani Suheila and Abasan to "evacuate immediately" ahead of an attack.
"The Israeli Defense Forces (military) will launch an unprecedented attack to destroy the capabilities of terrorist organisations in this area," Arabic-language spokesman Avichay Adraee said on Telegram.
"You must evacuate immediately to the west to the Mawasi area. From this moment, Khan Yunis will be considered a dangerous combat zone."
Israel will 'take control of all' of Gaza Strip, Netanyahu says
Israeli forces will "take control of all" of the Gaza Strip, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said, as his military pressed a newly expanded offensive in the territory.
"The fighting is intense and we are making progress. We will take control of all the territory of the Strip," he said in a video posted to his Telegram channel. "We will not give up. But in order to succeed, we must act in a way that cannot be stopped."
