Israel-Hamas war: Biden and Netanyahu hold first phone call in a month amid warnings of ‘imminent famine’ in Gaza
US President Joe Biden and his Israeli counterpart Benjamin Netanyahu have held their first phone call in a month, amid warnings of an “imminent famine” in northern Gaza.
It comes as a group of aid agencies warned that an estimated 70% of the population in northern Gaza faced catastrophic hunger, and that virtually everyone in the besieged strip is struggling to get enough food.
The European Union’s top diplomat also blamed Israel for the crisis on Monday, saying an impending famine in Gaza was “entirely man-made”.
Meanwhile, amid talk of tension between the US and Israel, White House national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, confirmed that Mr Netanyahu had held a phone call – their first in 31 days.
He said they had agreed to send a team of Israeli officials to Washington to discuss with members of Mr Biden’s team to hear US concerns about a possible military assault on the southern Gazan city of Rafah.
He said the talks, expected to involve military, intelligence, and humanitarian experts, were set to be held in the coming days.
But he stressed that the US felt a major ground operation in Rafah would be a “mistake” and that Mr Biden had warned Mr Netanyahu against it.
“It would lead to more innocent civilian deaths, worsen the already dire humanitarian crisis, deepen the anarchy in Gaza, and further isolate Israel internationally,” Mr Sullivan added.
“Israel has not presented us or the world with a plan for how or where they would safely move those civilians, let alone feed and house them and ensure access to basic things like sanitation.”
President Joe Biden speaks during a Women’s History Month reception at the White House. Pic: AP
US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan speaks during a press briefing at the White House. Pic: Reuters
Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu delivers his speech after a meeting with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz in Jerusalem on Sunday. Pic: AP
In other developments in the Israel-Hamas war:
• Israeli forces launched another raid on the Gaza Strip’s largest hospital on Monday, saying Hamas militants had regrouped there;
• They also said they had killed a Hamas commander who was armed and hiding inside the medical centre;
• It emerged Israel had urged the top UN court to reject the latest request by South Africa for interim orders to prevent starvation in Gaza;
• A top UN aid official for Palestinian areas called for an opening of “all roads” into Gaza to help avert the potential famine.
On Monday, a new report from the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification warned of an “imminent famine” in northern Gaza.
The group, a partnership of more than a dozen governments, UN aid and other agencies that determine the severity of food crises, said virtually everyone in Gaza was struggling to get enough food.
It also said that some 210,000 people in the north were in “Phase 5”, its highest category, referred to as “catastrophic hunger”.
A looming Israeli ground attack in Rafah would worsen the crisis, it warned, claiming it would drive around half of the 2.3 million people in Gaza into Phase 5.
Displaced Palestinians, who fled their houses, shelter in a tent camp in Rafah. Pic: Retuers
On Monday, Josep Borrell, the European Union’s foreign policy chief, accused Israel of weaponising food to provoke famine.
“In Gaza we are no longer on the brink of famine, we are in a state of famine, affecting thousands of people,” he said at the opening of a conference on humanitarian aid for Gaza in Brussels.
“Trucks are stopped. People are dying, while the land crossings are artificially closed,” he said.
Aid agencies say they have struggled to get enough aid in because of a burdensome Israeli process to import humanitarian aid, and that the continuing conflict has made distribution in the north of Gaza virtually impossible.
Israel says there are “no limits on the amount of aid that can go into Gaza”.
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Israel using starvation as ‘weapon of war’
The US and other countries have carried out airdrops in recent days and a sea corridor has just opened up.
However, aid groups have said those efforts are costly and inefficient and are no substitute for Israel opening up more land routes.
It comes as Israeli forces launched another raid on the Gaza Strip’s largest hospital on Monday, saying Hamas militants had regrouped there and had fired on them from inside the site where Palestinian officials say tens of thousands of people have been sheltering.
The army last raided al Shifa Hospital in November after claiming that Hamas maintained an elaborate command centre within and beneath the facility.
However, the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) and Israel Securities Authority (ISA) said military activity had not stopped and they had launched a “precise operation to thwart terrorist activity”.
The IDF said it killed a Hamas commander who was armed and hiding inside the medical centre, and that one of its own soldiers was killed in the operation.
Palestinian authorities described the raid as a “war crime” that had resulted in multiple casualties.
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Screams heard after al Shifa raid
Separately, on Monday, the US said Israel had killed Hamas number three, Marwan Issa, in an operation last week.
A spokesperson for the IDF said they had “no comment on the matter”.
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Later on Monday, it emerged that Israel has urged the top UN court to reject the latest request by South Africa for interim orders to prevent starvation in Gaza as part of a case accusing Israel of breaching the Genocide Convention with its military offensive against Hamas.
In a written response published on Monday by the International Court of Justice, Israel said that claims by South Africa in its request filed earlier this month were “wholly unfounded in fact and law, morally repugnant, and represent an abuse both of the Genocide Convention and of the Court itself”.
Israel fervently denies that its military campaign in Gaza amounts to a breach of the Genocide Convention.
Last-known photo of Marwan Issa, taken in 2015
It acknowledged in its written response to South Africa’s request that there are “also tragic and agonising civilian casualties in this war”.
“These realities are the painful result of intensive armed hostilities that Israel did not start and did not want,” it said.
No date has been set for judges to rule on the South African request.
At hearings in January, lawyers for Israel argued that the war in Gaza was a legitimate defence of its people and that it was Hamas militants who were guilty of genocide.
After the hearings, the court ordered Israel in late January to do all it could to prevent death, destruction and any acts of genocide in Gaza, but stopped short of ordering an end to the military offensive triggered by the deadly 7 October incursion into southern Israel by Hamas.
Storm Shadow cruise missiles made in the UK and donated to Ukraine have once again been used to strike targets inside Russia.
The long-range weapons – which cost roughly £2m each – have been used to devastating effect in the Black Sea, sinking or damaging several Russian ships, and now against a chemical plant.
Last year, Ukraine’s allies lifted restrictions on Storm Shadows and other long-range missiles, meaning Kyiv’s military can use them against targets across the border.
Follow latest: Storm Shadow missiles used in ‘massive’ attack on Russia
A Storm Shadow missile system. Pic: Gary Dawson/Shutterstock
What are Storm Shadow missiles?
Storm Shadows are cruise missiles developed by the UK and France in the 1990s.
Launched from aircraft, they have a range more than 155 miles, manufacturer MBDA says, and can travel at speeds exceeding 600mph.
The missiles can be used with high precision for deep strikes while evading detection, the manufacturer says.
They have been used by the RAF and French air force and in the Gulf, Iraq and Libya, and more recently have been used by Ukrainian forces.
What sets them apart from some other projectiles is they use terrain mapping to navigate to their target, rather than relying just on GPS, military analyst Sean Bell says.
A Tornado GR4 with Storm Shadow cruise missiles. Pic: Crown copyright
How have they been used in Ukraine?
Back in May 2023, the UK government announced it would provide Ukraine with Storm Shadow missiles – the first country to do so.
Since then they have been used by Kyiv’s defenders to strike Russian targets inside Ukraine and also inside Russia.
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While operational details of their use do not always emerge, it has been reported Storm Shadows have been used against targets including military headquarters and ships.
Storm Shadows can likely be operated entirely from within Ukraine, though probably with the assistance of intelligence gathered by Western surveillance planes over international waters.
A police officer has been injured after a night of violent protests outside an asylum hotel in Dublin – with six arrests made.
Bricks were thrown and fireworks were discharged outside the Citywest Hotel – with glass bottles used as missiles and a police van set on fire.
A Garda helicopter was also targeted with lasers, and the police service says some of those on the streets were seen carrying garden forks.
Pic: PA
Pic: PA
Commissioner Justin Kelly added: “This was obviously not a peaceful protest. The actions this evening can only be described as thuggery. This was a mob intent on violence.
“We will now begin the process of identifying those who committed crimes and we will bring those involved in this violence to justice.”
It is the second night of demonstrations after an alleged sexual assault in its vicinity in the early hours of Monday morning.
Some of the crowd threw stones and other missiles at the public order officers as they moved the protesters back – and water cannon was deployed at the scene.
A line of officers was preventing the protesters from approaching the hotel.
Police officers block protesters outside the hotel. Pic: PA
‘Those involved will be brought to justice’
Ireland’s premier, Taoiseach Micheál Martin, paid tribute to the officers who were on the frontline of the protests.
“There can be no justification for the vile abuse against them, or the attempted assaults and attacks on members of the force that will shock all right-thinking people,” he said.
Justice minister Jim O’Callaghan said those involved in the violence will be brought to justice.
“The scenes of public disorder we have witnessed at Citywest must be condemned,” he said.
“People threw missiles at Gardai, threw fireworks at them and set a Garda vehicle on fire.
“This is unacceptable and will result in a forceful response from the Gardai.
“Those involved will be brought to justice.”
‘No excuse’ for violence
The minister said a man had been arrested and had appeared in court in relation to the alleged assault in the vicinity of the hotel.
He added: “While I am not in a position to comment any further on this criminal investigation, I have been advised that there is no ongoing threat to public safety in the area.”
He said attacks on officers would “not be tolerated”, adding: “Peaceful protest is a cornerstone of our democracy. Violence is not.
“There is no excuse for the scenes we have witnessed.”
The demonstration on Monday night passed without a significant incident.
It comes two years after anti-immigrant demonstrators triggered a major riot in the centre of Dublin after three young children were stabbed.
A police van has been set on fire and missiles have been thrown at officers as protesters gathered outside a hotel used to house asylum seekers in Dublin.
It is the second night of demonstrations outside the Citywest Hotel after an alleged sexual assault in its vicinity in the early hours of Monday morning.
A large crowd has gathered in the area and members of the Garda’s public order unit have been deployed.
Footage from the scene showed a Garda vehicle on fire as well as several protesters displaying Irish flags.
Many protesters carried Republic of Ireland flags
Some of the crowd threw stones and other missiles at the public order officers as they moved the protesters back.
A Garda helicopter hovered overhead and a water cannon was deployed on the scene.
Ireland’s justice minister, Jim O’Callaghan, said those involved will be brought to justice.
“The scenes of public disorder we have witnessed at Citywest tonight must be condemned,” he said.
“People threw missiles at Gardai, threw fireworks at them and set a Garda vehicle on fire.
“This is unacceptable and will result in a forceful response from the Gardai.
“Those involved will be brought to justice.”
The minister said a man had been arrested and had appeared in court in relation to the alleged assault in the vicinity of the hotel.
He added: “While I am not in a position to comment any further on this criminal investigation, I have been advised that there is no ongoing threat to public safety in the area.
He said attacks on gardai will “not be tolerated”, adding: “Peaceful protest is a cornerstone of our democracy. Violence is not.
“There is no excuse for the scenes we have witnessed tonight.”
It was the second night of protest outside the hotel, which is being used as state accommodation for people seeking international protection. The demonstration on Monday night passed without a significant incident.
It comes two years after anti-immigrant demonstrators triggered a major riot in the centre of Dublin after three young children were stabbed.
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