The Qatari authorities condemn the Israeli government’s ban on humanitarian aid supplies to the Gaza Strip, saying it is unacceptable to use food as a weapon, according to a statement from the Qatari Foreign Ministry.
⠀
“Qatar strongly condemns the decision of the government of the occupied Israel to stop the supply of humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip, calling it a gross violation of the ceasefire agreement, international humanitarian law, the Fourth Geneva Convention and all religious norms,” the Qatari Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
⠀
The Foreign Ministry in its statement stressed the categorical rejection by the Qatari leadership of the use of food as a weapon of war, calling on the international community to oblige Israel to guarantee safe, sustainable and unhindered humanitarian aid access to all areas of the strip.
⠀
The new plan provides for the extension of the ceasefire for the periods of Ramadan and Passover – that is, for another month and a half. The plan calls for the release of half of the Israeli hostages from the Gaza Strip, both alive and dead, on the first day of its implementation, and if a permanent ceasefire is reached, all remaining abductees, both alive and dead, will be released.
⠀
From January 19 to March 1, a ceasefire was in effect in the Gaza Strip as part of an agreement between Israel and Hamas on the release of Israeli hostages in exchange for Palestinian prisoners. In six weeks, the Palestinian groups released 30 living hostages and handed over the bodies of eight dead. In exchange, Israel released about 1,700 Palestinian prisoners, including those sentenced to life in prison for terrorism, and the army withdrew from the interior of the Gaza Strip. At the moment, the Hamas movement continues to hold 59 more hostages in the sector, about half of whom are officially recognized as dead.
⠀
Since the beginning of the truce, humanitarian aid has been significantly increased to the Gaza Strip.
