The US accused Israel of insufficient protection of the civilian population of Gaza

Surprisingly, US highlights ‘gap’ in Israeli commitment to protecting civilians in Gaza. In his sharpest criticism of Israel’s handling of its war against Hamas, Antony Blinken says Israel must pay “special attention to the protection of civilians.”

The US has issued its sharpest criticism of Israel’s handling of the war against Hamas, while growing pressure to speed up the delivery of humanitarian supplies to Gaza has led Benjamin Netanyahu’s government to say another checkpoint will be opened into the territory, writes The Guardian.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said there was a gap between the Israeli government’s stated intentions to protect civilians and the mounting casualties seen on the ground.

“Nearly a week into this campaign in the south, it remains critical that Israel maintains a strong focus on protecting civilians,” Blinken said at a news conference after meeting British Foreign Secretary David Cameron in Washington.

“And there really remains a gap between them. “between the intent to protect civilians and the actual results we see on the ground,” Blinken said.

More than 17,000 people have been killed in Gaza since Oct. 7, when Israel began bombing the area in response to cross-border rampages by Hamas militants who control the enclave, according to Gaza’s Hamas-run health ministry.

Israel says it is committed to destroying Hamas but is doing everything it can to keep civilians out of harm’s way, including warnings about military operations.

In a phone call with Netanyahu on Thursday, US President Joe Biden “emphasized the critical need to protect civilians and separate civilians from Hamas,” the White House said in a statement.

Despite the warnings, hundreds more Palestinians were killed Thursday, according to Hamas’ health ministry, and Israel continued its offensive in and around Gaza’s main cities.

Early Friday, the health ministry reported another 40 dead in the strikes near Gaza City and “dozens more” in Jabaliya and Khan Yunis.

The Israeli military is continuing its heavy bombing campaign amid intense fighting in Gaza as its war with Hamas reaches the two-month mark and the resulting humanitarian crisis threatens chaos.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said they hit about 250 targets in Gaza in the 24 hours ending Thursday morning.

Some 1.87 million people in Gaza – more than 80% of the 2.3 million population – have fled their homes in the past two months, according to the UN. Many families have been displaced multiple times and are living in tents and overcrowded temporary shelters.

Massive civilian casualties in the conflict have caused concern around the world, exacerbated by severe shortages caused by the Israeli siege, which has limited access to food, water, fuel and medicine in Gaza.

On Thursday, Israel agreed, at the request of the United States, to open the Kerem Shalom border crossing in southern Gaza to inspect trucks and their cargo for the first time since the start of the war, The Guardian notes.

If that happens, UN humanitarian chief Martin Griffith says, it would be a major boost to humanitarian efforts. “This would be the first miracle we have seen in weeks, but it would also be a huge boost to the logistics and logistics of the humanitarian operation,” he said.

Egypt, along with the United Nations, is lobbying Israel to speed up the inspection process, which requires vehicles to drive up to Egypt’s border with Israel before returning to Rafah. The number of trucks crossing the border daily has dropped to fewer than 100 from nearly 200 during the brief truce, according to the UN.

Colonel Elad Goren of Israel’s Cogat military liaison unit with the Palestinians did not give a date for the checkpoint’s opening and said the checkpoint would be used to increase the capacity of aid trucks, but not to allow aid directly into Gaza.

The White House said Biden called for more aid to civilians in Gaza during his call with Netanyahu on Thursday.

The US President added that “much more assistance is urgently needed across the board.”

The UN Security Council will meet on Friday to vote on a call for an immediate ceasefire.