The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said Tuesday that it is expanding its humanitarian efforts in northern Gaza as it expands its attack there against remaining Hamas forces and encourages civilians to evacuate to the south.
As Breitbart News has reported, the IDF has launched a new and ambitious offensive in northern Gaza to prevent Gaza from regrouping in the area closest to Israel’s major population centers. Amid concerns about the humanitarian situation in that part of Gaza, the IDF’s division for humanitarian affairs, the Coordination of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT), has stepped up its efforts to provide aid to civilians in Gaza.
In a statement, the IDF said:
In light of IDF operations in the Jabaliya area targeting terrorist infrastructure and operatives embedded inside civilian areas, the IDF, through COGAT’s Gaza Coordination and Liaison Administration (CLA), continues to act in line with international law to facilitate and ease humanitarian aid to Gaza’s residents, particularly in the medical field.
In recent days, 33 patients, medical staff, and accompanying personnel were safely transferred from Kamal Adwan Hospital to functioning hospitals within Gaza. This was coordinated by the Gaza CLA and the 162nd Division in coordination with the Red Cross, using seven ambulances escorted by three UN vehicles. This effort was part of the IDF’s cooperation with the international community and the health authorities to safely evacuate hospitals in the area to ensure the safety of civilians, while maintaining the humanitarian evacuation routes and medical centers providing treatment to Gaza’s residents.
In addition, a fuel tanker carrying 68,650 liters of fuel was delivered to hospitals in northern Gaza to ensure the continuation of essential medical services. As part of the medical response in the northern Gaza area, 800 blood transfusion units donated by UNICEF were delivered to hospitals in the region. This support occurred alongside the continuation of military operations against Hamas in the area.
The IDF, in coordination with COGAT, remains committed to facilitating humanitarian aid, especially in the medical field, while continuing its efforts to dismantle Hamas’ military and governance infrastructure embedded inside civilian areas.
Israeli government spokesman David Mencer told reporters Tuesday that the United Nations had only collected 12 of the more than 100 trucks that had crossed into Gaza the day before, a frequent theme of criticism in daily briefings.
Joel B. Pollak is Senior Editor-at-Large at Breitbart News and the host of Breitbart News Sunday on Sirius XM Patriot on Sunday evenings from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. ET (4 p.m. to 7 p.m. PT). He is the author of The Agenda: What Trump Should Do in His First 100 Days, available for pre-order on Amazon. He is also the author of The Trumpian Virtues: The Lessons and Legacy of Donald Trump’s Presidency, now available on Audible. He is a winner of the 2018 Robert Novak Journalism Alumni Fellowship. Follow him on Twitter at @joelpollak.