The U.S. will not change its policy on arms transfers to Israel even though the humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip remains dire, the State Department said Tuesday, the deadline the White House set for Israel to ramp up access to aid in the besieged Palestinian enclave.
State Department spokesperson Vedant Patel told reporters the decision came as "Israel has taken a number of steps" outlined in a letter from Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin to Israeli counterparts last month. "We continue to be in discussion with Israel about the steps they took and other steps they need to take," he said.
An average of just over 30 trucks a day have been let into Gaza in recent weeks, representing “just over six percent of the daily needs,” according to Philippe Lazzarini, commissioner-general of the United Nations agency assisting Palestinian refugees, UNRWA.
“What is being allowed into Gaza is not enough,” he wrote Friday on X.
Before Israel launched its offensive in Gaza, around around 500 trucks entered the enclave each day, according to the British Red Cross.
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