May 14 (UPI) -- The Israeli government will allow humanitarian aid to resume for several hundred thousand starving Palestinians in the Gaza Strip by a new relief group, Gaza Humanitarian Foundation.
GHF said it has the backing of the United States and Israel, according to a statement obtained by Axios. The foundation said it is in the final stages of committing more than 300 million meals for the initial 90 days.
Middle East Eye reported the foundation wants to ensure its "own security" in the Strip, and alleged Hamas had previously been stealing aid.
Since the cease-fire between Israel and militant-run Hamas ended on March 1, Israel has frozen all supplies of food, water and medicine to the region of an estimated 2.5 million people. The United Nations said Gazans are at a "critical risk of famine" with 1 in 5, or 500,000, facing starvation as the war rages since Hamas attacked Israel on Oct. 7, 2023.
"The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation today announced that it will launch operations in the Gaza Strip before the end of the month," the foundation said in a statement. "This follows discussions with Israeli officials to allow the flow of transitional aid into Gaza under existing mechanisms while construction of GHF's Secure Distribution Sites is completed."
