Gaza experienced a rare day of relative calm on Sunday, marking the first such occurrence in months. This brief respite came after Israel's military announced a daily "tactical pause" in fighting around a southern route to facilitate the flow of humanitarian aid. The pause, which coincided with the first day of Eid al-Adha, was welcomed by many in the region, although the situation remains dire.
"Since this morning, we've felt a sudden calm with no gunfire or bombings... It's strange," said Haitham al-Ghura, a resident of Gaza City. The United Nations also welcomed the Israeli move, although Jens Laerke, spokesman for the UN humanitarian agency OCHA, noted that "this has yet to translate into more aid reaching people in need." He emphasized the urgent need for food, water, sanitation, shelter, and health care in Gaza, where many live near piles of solid waste, heightening health risks.
The tactical pause is intended to allow aid to be delivered safely throughout Gaza. However, dire shortages of food and other essentials have been exacerbated by overland access restrictions and the closure of the key Rafah crossing with Egypt since Israeli forces seized its Palestinian side in early May. Israel has defended its efforts to let aid into Gaza, blaming militants for looting supplies and humanitarian workers for failing to distribute them to civilians.
The pause "for humanitarian purposes will take place from 8:00 am (0500 GMT) until 7:00 pm (1600 GMT) every day until further notice along the road that leads from the Kerem Shalom crossing to the Salah al-Din road and then northwards," according to a military statement. Despite the pause, some areas in Gaza still experienced violence. Mahmud Basal, spokesman for the civil defense agency in Hamas-ruled Gaza, reported "some targeting" in Gaza City's Shujaiya and Zeitun areas, as well as Israeli artillery fire in Rafah.
Children were among the wounded and killed from a strike on the Bureij refugee camp. An AFP correspondent noted that overall calm continued in most of Gaza at the end of Sunday's pause, although there were reports of shelling and at least one strike in Rafah and an air strike in central Gaza during the early evening.
The announcement of a "local, tactical pause of military activity" during daylight hours in an area of Rafah came a day after eight Israeli soldiers were killed in a blast near the far-southern city, and three more troops died elsewhere. This was one of the heaviest losses for the army in more than eight months of war against Hamas militants.
"We don't have the joy we usually have" for Eid, said Umm Muhammad al-Katri in northern Gaza's Jabalia refugee camp. "I came to the Eid prayers mourning. I've lost my son." The military said the pause was in effect as part of efforts to "increase the volumes of humanitarian aid" following discussions with the United Nations and other organizations.
Israel's southern military commander, Major General Yaron Finkelman, told troops during a tour of Rafah on Sunday that they are "degrading" Hamas's brigade there "and we will act and continue until we defeat it." Abu Obaida, spokesman for Hamas's military wing, vowed to "continue our painful strikes against the enemy wherever it may be."
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