Key events
Former Israeli PM Ehud Olmert: Israel’s actions in Gaza ‘very close to a war crime’
The former Israeli prime minister Ehud Olmert has said that what Israel “is doing now in Gaza, is very close to a war crime” during an interview with the BBC.
Olmert, who was prime minister from 2006 to 2009, told the BBC that Benjamin Netanyahu’s government were waging “a war without a purpose – a war without a chance of achieving anything that can save the lives of the hostages.”
He said that the “obvious appearance” of the campaign was that Israel was killing many Palestinians, and that “from every point of view, this is obnoxious and outrageous.”
He said that the Israeli government had to be more clear that it was “fighting the killers of Hamas, we are not fighting innocent civilians.”
Israel announced overnight that a member of service personnel was killed in combat in southern Gaza on 20 May. The IDF lists 858 service personnel who have been killed since 7 October 2023.
Overnight the chief of staff of the Israeli forces, Eyal Zamir, issued a statement about the renewed military offensive in Gaza. Describing the months-long bombardment of Gaza, which, according to Palestinian medical services has cost over 50,000 lives, Zamir said “We are acting in self-defense.”
In a passage directed to the Palestinian people, he said:
I wish to address the residents of Gaza: We are not the ones who brought this destruction upon you. We are not the ones who started this war. We are not the ones who have deprived you of food, shelter, and money. We do not hide in hospitals or schools. We do not live in luxury hotels while you live in hardship. This is your leadership – the ones holding our hostages. Hamas is responsible for starting the war. It is responsible for the difficult situation of the civilian population – it brought destruction, and it will not be the one to rebuild.
Zamir also claimed that it was “baseless” to accuse the Israeli forces of acting in any way other than in accordance with international law. Israel has imposed a near total blockade on humanitarian aid entering the Gaza Strip for nearly all of March so far, leading to starvation warnings. Zamir said:
The IDF operates at all times in accordance with IDF values, Israeli law, and international law, while maintaining an uncompromising commitment to the security of the State of Israel and its civilians. Any statement that casts doubt on the integrity of our actions or the morality of our soldiers is baseless.
Zamir also attempted to offer reassurance to the families of the remaining hostages in Gaza, who have been held by Hamas captive since 7 October 2023, and many of whom are thought to have been killed. Zamir said:
I am fully aware of the concern and anguish experienced by the families of the hostages, and of the questions raised by the combination of these objectives. It is a complex challenge, but we possess the tools, wisdom, and responsibility to meet it. I, along with every soldier in the IDF, will continue to act tirelessly until all our hostages are brought home.
Welcome and summary
Hello and welcome to the Guardian’s continuing coverage of the crisis in the Middle East.
Israel has rejected EU and UK criticism of its intensified campaign in Gaza, where rescuers said fresh attacks on Tuesday including strikes on a family home and a school-turned-shelter had killed scores of people, among them many children.
Israel said that 93 trucks of aid – a fraction of what is needed – had entered Gaza from Israel on Tuesday but the UN said none of that aid had actually reached Palestinians. UN spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric said that although the aid had entered Gaza, aid workers were not able to bring it to distribution points where it is most needed, after the Israeli military forced them to reload the supplies on to separate trucks and workers ran out of time.
The UN announced on Monday that it had been cleared to send in aid for the first time since Israel imposed a total blockade on 2 March, sparking severe shortages of food and medicine. UN-backed experts said last week Gaza was at “a critical risk of famine”.
The humanitarian crisis caused by Israel has prompted international anger, with the European Union saying it would review its trade cooperation deal with Israel over the blockade, while the UK suspended free-trade negotiations with Israel, summoned the Israeli ambassador and said it was imposing sanctions on settlers in the occupied West Bank in its toughest actions so far against Israel’s conduct of the war.
The EU action “reflects a total misunderstanding of the complex reality Israel is facing,” Israeli foreign ministry spokesperson Oren Marmorstein said. Responding to Britain, Marmorstein said “external pressure will not divert Israel from its path in defending its existence and security.”
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The UK suspended trade negotiations with Israel over its Gaza blockade, the UK foreign secretary, David Lammy, told parliament on Tuesday. He said the Israeli ambassador had been summoned. The UK’s prime minister, Keir Starmer, described the situation in Gaza as “horrific” and “utterly intolerable”. It comes after the UK, France and Canada on Monday issued their strongest condemnation yet of the way Israel is conducting its war on Gaza and repeated calls for a ceasefire.
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The European Union has agreed to review its trade agreement with Israel over alleged human rights abuses in Gaza, the EU’s top diplomat, Kaja Kallas, said on Tuesday. The decision comes almost 15 months after Irish and Spanish leaders called on the European Commission’s chief, Ursula von der Leyen, to make such a move. The change comes after a proposal from the Netherlands last week gained widespread support amid growing alarm about the dire humanitarian situation in Gaza and the West Bank.
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The former Israeli prime minister Ehud Olmert has said that what Israel “is doing now in Gaza, is very close to a war crime” during an interview with the BBC.
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No humanitarian aid has been distributed yet in the Gaza Strip on Tuesday, according to a spokesperson for the United Nations, Stéphane Dujarric. Separately, Cogat, the Israeli defence ministry body that oversees civil affairs in the Palestinian territories, claimed 93 UN aid trucks entered Gaza on Tuesday.
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At least 87 Palestinians were killed and more than 290 injured by Israeli attacks in Gaza over the past 24 hours, Gaza’s health ministry said on Tuesday. At least 53,573 Palestinian people have been killed and 121,688 injured in Israeli attacks on Gaza since 7 October 2023, the ministry said. Gaza City, Deir el-Balah, the Nuseirat refugee camp, the Jabalia refugee camp and the Bureij refugee camp were among the places targeted in deadly Israeli strikes on Tuesday, according to reports.
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Benjamin Netanyahu ordered part of his country’s delegation negotiating a ceasefire and hostage release deal in Doha to return to Israel, according to Israeli media reports. Separately, Qatar’s prime minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al-Thani said Israel’s continuing assault on Gaza had undermined peace efforts. “This irresponsible, aggressive behaviour undermines any potential chance for peace,” the Qatari leader said.
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The US secretary of state, Marco Rubio, said Washington has not discussed the deportation of Palestinians from Gaza to Libya, but he said Washington had asked other countries in the region if they would be open to accepting Palestinians who want to move voluntarily. Rubio was testifying before the Senate foreign relations committee on Tuesday on Tuesday, when a pro-Palestine protester disrupted the hearing.
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Australia joined 22 other nations in condemning Israel over its decision to only allow limited aid into Gaza. 23 countries, including the UK, Canada, New Zealand and Australia, urged Israel not to politicise humanitarian aid for the starving population.
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The Lebanese health ministry said an Israeli airstrike injured nine people in a drone attack on the coastal Tyre district in the south of the country. Three people are now in “critical condition”, the ministry said, adding that two children were among the injured.
