'Difficult to see' how Israel's Gaza aid denial aligns with international law: British foreign secretary

LONDON

UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy told members of parliament Thursday that it is “difficult to see” how Israel’s decision to block humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip aligns with international humanitarian law, as the humanitarian crisis deepens.

Lammy addressed the renewed Israeli attacks on Gaza and described the airstrikes as having caused an "appalling loss of life," with primarily women and children killed in the missile and artillery barrages.

"This appears to have been the deadliest single day for Palestinians since the war began. This is an appalling loss of life, and we mourn the loss of every civilian," he said in the House of Commons.

Lammy also confirmed that a British national was among those wounded when a UN compound was struck Wednesday.

"Israeli forces did not begin to withdraw from the Philadelphi Corridor as agreed and on March 2 the Israeli government announced it was blocking all further aid deliveries until Hamas agreed to its terms," he said.

This blockade has left more than half a million civilians without access to clean drinking water and led to a 200% surge in the price of essential food items, he underlined.

"As I told the House on Monday, this is appalling and unacceptable," said Lammy. "Ultimately, of course, these are matters for the courts, not governments, to determine, but it’s difficult to see how denying humanitarian assistance to a civilian population can be compatible with international humanitarian law."

More than 700 Palestinians were killed and over 900 injured in a surprise aerial campaign by Israel on Gaza since Tuesday, shattering a ceasefire and prisoner exchange agreement that took hold in January.

Nearly 50,000 Palestinians have been killed, mostly women and children, and nearly 113,000 injured in a brutal Israeli military onslaught in Gaza since October 2023.