S Ramadan begins, hunger in Gaza worsens
RAFAH, Gaza Strip — Palestinians began fasting for the Muslim holy month of Ramadan on Monday with cease-fire talks at a standstill, hunger worsening across the Gaza Strip and no end in sight to the 5-month-old war between Israel and Hamas.
Prayers were held outside amid the rubble of demolished buildings. Fairy lights and decorations were hung in packed tent camps, and a video from a U.N.-school- turned-shelter showed children dancing and spraying
am in celebration as a man sang into a loudspeaker.
But there was little to cel- ebrate after five months of war that has killed over 30,000 Palestinians and left much of Gaza in ruins. Fam- ilies would ordinarily break the daily sunrise-to-sundown
st with holiday feasts, but even where food is available, there is little beyond canned goods, and the prices are too high for many.
u don’t see anyone with joy in their eyes,” said Sabah al-Hendi, who was shopping for food Sunday in the southernmost city of Rafah. “Every family is sad. Every family has a martyr.”
The U.S., Qatar and Egypt had hoped to broker a cease- fire ahead of the normally joyous holiday that would include the release of doz- ens of Israeli hostages and Palestinian prisoners, and the entry of a large amount of humanitarian aid, but the talks have stalled.
Hamas is demanding guar- antees that any such agree- ment will lead to an end to the war. Israeli Prime Minis- ter Benjamin Netanyahu has rejected that demand, vowing to continue the offensive until “total victory” against the militant group and the release of all the remaining hostages held in Gaza.
Netanyahu said Mon- day that Israel had killed “Hamas’ number four” leader and added that more targeted killings were to come.
“Three, two, and one are on the way. They are all dead men. We will reach them all,” he said.
Netanyahu was likely ref- erencing the assassination of Saleh Arouri, the deputy political head of Hamas and a founder of the group’s military wing, who was killed in a blast in Beirut in January. Israel was widely believed to be behind the blast, although it did not take responsibility.
U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres urged Israel and Hamas to honor the spirit of Ramadan by “silencing the guns” and releasing all the hostages.
“The eyes of the world are watching. The eyes of his- tory are watching. We cannot look away,” he said. “We must act to avoid more pre- ventable deaths. …”
The war began when Hamas-led militants stormed into southern Israel on Oct. 7, killing some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and taking around 250 hostage. Hamas is still believed to be holding around 100 captives and the remains of 30 others following an exchange last year.
The war has driven around 80% of Gaza’s population of 2.3 million people from their homes and pushed hundreds of thousands to the brink of famine. Health officials say at least 25 people, mostly children, have died from malnutrition and dehydration in northern Gaza.
Israeli forces have largely sealed off the north since October, and aid groups say Israeli restrictions, ongoing hostilities and the breakdown of law and order have made it nearly impossible to deliver desperately needed food in much of the territory.
Israel has vowed to expand its offensive to the southern city of Rafah, where half of Gaza’s population has sought refuge.
President Joe Biden has said an attack on Rafah would be a “red line” for him, but that the U.S. would continue to provide military aid to Israel.