All United Nations Security Council members, except the United States, have said the famine in Gaza was a "man-made crisis" and warned that the use of starvation as a weapon of war is banned under international humanitarian law.
Global hunger monitor IPC determined this month that an entirely man-made famine is currently taking place in Gaza, while UN human rights chief Volker Turk said the famine was the direct result of Israeli government policies.
In a joint statement today, the 14 security council members called for an immediate, unconditional and permanent ceasefire, the release of all hostages held by Hamas and other groups, a substantive surge of aid throughout Gaza, and for Israel to immediately and unconditionally lift all restrictions on aid delivery.
The Irish Mission to the UN said Ireland "strongly supports" the security council's statement on famine in Gaza.
Britain's UN representative Barbara Woodward said Israel must immediately lift its restrictions on aid.
"I have two clear messages for Israel: immediately lift restrictions and allow food, medical supplies and fuel to reach those in desperate need, in line with International humanitarian law.
"And allow UN and international NGOs to carry out their life-saving work without obstruction," she said.
She added that Israel must retract plans for settlement construction in the E1 area of the West Bank which amount to a "flagrant breach" of international law.
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It comes as Israeli tanks pushed into a new area on the edge of Gaza City overnight, destroying houses and prompting residents to flee, witnesses said, while US President Donald Trump chaired a meeting involving Jared Kushner and Tony Blair.
Tanks entered into the Ebad-Alrahman neighbourhood on the northern edge of Gaza City and shelled houses, wounding several people and forcing many others, who had been taken by surprise, to move deeper into Gaza's largest city, residents said.
"All of a sudden, we heard that the tanks pushed into Ebad-Alrahman, the sounds of explosions became louder, and louder, and we saw people escaping towards our area," said Saad Abed, 60, a former construction worker.
"If no truce is reached, we will see the tanks outside our homes," he said via a chat app from his house in Jala Street in Gaza City, around one kilometre from the Ebad-Alrahman neighbourhood.
In Jabalia, just north of Gaza City, resident Hamad al-Karawi said he had left his home after a message broadcast from a drone ordered people to evacuate immediately.
"We scattered out onto the streets with no place or home to take refuge in," he said.
Israeli strikes and gunfire killed at least 24 people across the territory today, Gaza's civil defence agency said.
Around half of the enclave's two million people are currently living in Gaza City and Israel has said they will be told to evacuate.
Thousands have already left, but church leaders in the city said they were staying put, as leaving Gaza City and "trying to flee to the south would be nothing less than a death sentence".
"For this reason, the clergy and nuns have decided to remain and continue to care for all those who will be in the compounds," a joint statement by the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate and the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem said.
Israeli attacks have killed more than 62,000 Palestinians since October 2023, according to Gaza health authorities.
The ministry's fatality figures have been deemed reliable by the United Nations.
The current stage of the war was triggered on 7 October 2023 when Hamas-led fighters stormed into Israel, killing 1,200 people and taking 251 hostages, according to Israeli tallies.
Israeli attacks and a humanitarian blockade have plunged the enclave into a humanitarian crisis, displaced nearly its entire population and left much of the territory in ruins.
The health ministry in Gaza said ten more people have died of malnutrition and starvation, raising deaths from such causes to 313 people, including 119 children, since the war started.
Trump chairs meeting with Kushner and Blair
US President Donald Trump presided over a policy meeting on the Gaza war with input from former British Prime Minister Tony Blair and former US Middle East envoy Jared Kushner, a senior White House official said.
Mr Trump, top White House officials, Mr Blair and Mr Kushner were discussing all aspects of the Gaza issue, including escalating food aid deliveries, the hostage crisis, post-war plans and more, the official said.
The official described the session as "simply a policy meeting," the type frequently held by Mr Trump and his team.
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Mr Kushner, who is married to Mr Trump's daughter Ivanka, was a key White House adviser in Mr Trump's first term on Middle East issues.
US special envoy Steve Witkoff previewed the meeting in an appearance on Fox News' 'Special Reporting with Bret Baier' yesterday.
"It is a very comprehensive plan we are putting together on the next day (in Gaza) and many people are going to see how robust it is and how well meaning it is and it reflects President Trump's humanitarian motives here," Mr Witkoff said.
Mr Trump had promised a quick end to the war in Gaza during last year's presidential campaign but a resolution has been elusive seven months into his second term.
Mr Trump's term began with a ceasefire which lasted two months, until Israeli strikes killed around 400 Palestinians on 18 March.
More recently, images of starving Palestinians in Gaza, including children, have shocked the world and fed criticism of Israel over the deteriorating conditions.
"President Trump has been clear that he wants the war to end, and he wants peace and prosperity for everyone in the region. The White House has nothing additional to share on the meeting at this time," a second White House official said.
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Accreditation: Reuters
