Israel-Hamas war: US supports immediate cease-fire in Gaza

Canada is planning on restoring its funding to the United Nations relief agency for Palestinians (UNRWA). Ottawa had suspended funding to the organization following Israeli allegations that its staff were involved in the bloody October 7 attacks, with many other nations also cutting off funds to the agency.

On Wednesday, the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation reported that the government plans to go ahead with a scheduled C$25 million ($18.5 million) payment in April and announce new funding, citing an unnamed government official.

A government official later confirmed the decision to restore funds to the AP news agency but said a formal announcement has been delayed.

Israel claims 12 of UNRWA's estimated 13,000 employees were involved in the Hamas-led terror attacks on the country on October 7.

The agency immediately fired the employees, but more than a dozen countries, including Canada, the US and Germany, suspended funding worth about €416 million, almost half its budget for 2024.

Last week, the European Commission said it would release €50 million ($54 million) of planned payments on Friday and the rest of the €82 million payments in two more payments over the rest of the year.

Norway, a top UNRWA donor and one of the countries that did not suspend funding, told Reuters on Wednesday that many of the countries that suspended their funding were having "second thoughts."

Barth Eide told Reuters in an interview that these countries recognize that "they cannot punish the whole Palestinian society."

More recently, Israel's UN envoy said over 450 agency workers were members of Palestinian militant groups.

Yemen's Houthi rebels attacked a bulk carrier in the Gulf of Aden on Wednesday, leaving at least two killed and six wounded, according to unnamed US officials.

The Barbados-flagged, Liberian-owned True Confidence was struck about 50 nautical miles southwest of the Aden port, setting it ablaze and adrift, its Greek operator said.

Crew members abandoned the vessel after the attack, US officials told news agencies on condition of anonymity. 

Houthi military spokesman Yahia Saree claimed the attack, saying the rebel group would only stop its ongoing attacks on vessels passing through the Red Sea when the "siege on the Palestinian people in Gaza is lifted."

The Iran-backed Houthis have been launching attacks on vessels transiting through the vital route since November. However, Wednesday's attack is considered the first fatal one.

The UK's Foreign Secretary David Cameron said in a late-night debate that "patience needs to run very thin and a whole series of warnings needs to be given" ahead of Israeli cabinet minister Benny Gantz's visit on Wednesday.

In comments made before the House of Lords Cameron said:  "We are facing a situation of dreadful suffering in Gaza," adding that he had spoken weeks ago about "the danger of this tipping into famine and the danger of illness tipping into disease."

"We are now at that point," Cameron said and emphasized that "People are dying of hunger; people are dying of otherwise preventable diseases."  

The foreign minister pointed out that the amount of aid entering Gaza in February was around half the amount that entered in January.

Cameron said among the issues that needed to be discussed with Gantz, was the humanitarian pause, increased access to the Palestinian territory via land and maritime routes and expanding the type of humanitarian assistance.

Israel has been accused of blocking or restricting aid into Gaza, something it denies, instead saying that it is committed to improving the humanitarian situation in the territory. 

Israel has blamed the UN for the limited amount of aid getting into the war-torn enclave.

Gaza's Hamas-run Health Ministry on Wednesday reported the deaths of 86 people over the past 24 hours.

The ministry said the death toll now stood at 30,717 dead, with 72,156 people wounded since the war between Israel and Hamas began following the October 7 terror attack.

The United Nations and humanitarian organizations consider the figures provided by the ministry to be largely reliable, although the ministry does not differentiate between civilians and combatants.

Around half of Gaza's 2.3 million inhabitants are children, and the UN says the majority of civilians killed have been women and children. 

A joint statement from the ASEAN group of South East Asian countries and Australia has called for a lasting cease-fire in the Gaza Strip.

The statement described the humanitarian situation in the Palestinian territory as "dire".

"We urge for an immediate and durable humanitarian ceasefire," said the statement from Canberra and the grouping of more than 10 nations that include Muslim majority Indonesia and Malaysia.

"We condemn attacks against all civilians and civilian infrastructure, leading to further deterioration of the humanitarian crisis in Gaza including restricted access to food, water, and other basic needs," ASEAN and Australia said.

"We call for rapid, safe, unimpeded and sustained humanitarian access to all those in need, including through increased capacity at border crossings, including by sea."

The text was agreed after days of diplomatic wrangling over the content.

The statement also called for the "immediate and unconditional release of all hostages in Gaza."

The Palestinian militant group Hamas said it will continue negotiating through mediators until they reach a cease-fire agreement.

"We are showing the required flexibility in order to reach a comprehensive cessation of aggression against our people, but the occupation is still evading the entitlements of this agreement," Hamas added.

International mediators are in the Egyptian capital, Cairo, for talks on a truce to pause fighting in Gaza before the Muslim holy month of Ramadan that begins early next week.

Israel has not sent a delegation to the talks.

US President Joe Biden has warned of a "very dangerous" situation if Israel and Hamas fail to reach a cease-fire by Ramadan.

Ramadan begins on March 10 or 11, depending on the lunar calendar.

The US president also said there was "no excuse" for Israel not to allow more aid into Gaza.

The US military said they shot down three drones and a missile fired toward one of its navy ships in the Red Sea on Tuesday.

"US Central Command (CENTCOM) forces shot down one anti-ship ballistic missile and three one-way attack unmanned aerial systems launched from Iranian-backed Houthi controlled areas of Yemen toward USS Carney (DDG 64) in the Red Sea. There are no injuries or damage to the ship," the military said in a statement.

A spokesperson for the Houthis had earlier said that their forces targeted two US destroyers in the Red Sea.

The Houthis have carried out numerous attacks on ships passing through the key maritime region, citing their opposition to Israel's offensive in the Gaza Strip.

The US has tabled a revised draft of a proposed UN Security Council resolution that calls for "an immediate cease-fire" of roughly six weeks. 

It also calls for the "release of all hostages."

This is the third draft of the text proposed by the US two weeks ago, calling for a temporary cease-fire in Gaza "as soon as practical."

The revised prosal reflects comments US Vice President Kamala Harris made over the weekend. 

She had called for a cease-fire for at least six weeks due to "the immense scale of suffering in Gaza."

Washington previously vetoed three draft council resolutions on the war in Gaza, two of which called for an immediate cease-fire.

The US designates Hamas as a terrorist organization, as do several other countries including Germany and Israel.

tg/lo, ab (dpa, Reuters, AP, AFP)