Hunger, death, as Ramadan begins
67 Palestinians reported killed
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 UNschool-turned-shelter showed children dancing and spraying foam in celebration as a man sang into a loudspeaker.
But there was little to celebrate after five months of war that has killed over 30,000 Palestinians and left much of Gaza in ruins. Gaza’s Health Ministry said the bodies of 67 people killed by Israeli strikes were brought to hospitals over the past 24 hours.
Families would ordinarily break the daily sunrise-to-sundown fast with holiday feasts, but even where food is available, there is little beyond canned goods, and the prices are too high for many.
“You don’t see anyone with joy in their eyes,” said Sabah alHendi, who was shopping for food Sunday in the southernmost city of Rafah. “Every family is sad. Every family has a martyr.”
The United States, Qatar, and Egypt had hoped to broker a cease-fire ahead of the holiday month that would include the release of dozens of Israeli hostages and Palestinian prisoners and the entry of a large amount of humanitarian aid, but the talks have stalled.
Hamas is demanding guarantees that any such agreement will lead to an end to the war. Israeli Prime Minister 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.
In Washington, Congress received an intelligence assessment that raised doubts about whether Netanyahu could stay in power.
The 2024 Annual Threat Assessment expressed concerns about Israel’s vision for the end of the war and said that Netanyahu’s right-wing coalition may be in jeopardy.
“Distrust of Netanyahu’s ability to rule has deepened and broadened across the public from its already high levels before the war, and we expect large protests demanding his resignation and new elections,” the report said. “A different, more moderate government is a possibility.”
The report predicted that Israel would struggle to achieve its goal of destroying Hamas.
“Israel probably will face lingering armed resistance from Hamas for years to come, and the military will struggle to neutralize Hamas’s underground infrastructure, which allows insurgents to hide, regain strength, and surprise Israeli forces,” the report said.
Tensions between President Biden and Netanyahu have flared in recent days over Israel’s planned military operations in Rafah in southern Gaza. But the intelligence report, prepared over months, was written before the most recent tensions.
The annual report is usually accompanied by two days of hearings before the Senate and the House intelligence committees. Intelligence officials were not asked about the assessment of Netanyahu’s government in testimony before the Senate panel Monday. Instead, questions about Israel and Gaza focused on hostage negotiations.
At Al-Aqsa in Jerusalem, the third-holiest site for Muslims, many Palestinians fear Israel will impose additional constraints on the site, which can draw 200,000 people in one day from not just Jerusalem but the Israeli-occupied West Bank and Israel as a whole.
Late Sunday, Palestinian and Israeli news media reported that police officers prevented many Palestinians from entering AlAqsa to perform prayers for the start of Ramadan. Both media cited a video that showed officers with batons chasing and beating some Palestinians.
Israel has said there has been no change to the status quo, which allows only Muslims to worship at the compound. The site is revered by Jews as the location of two ancient temples, and by Muslims as the Noble Sanctuary, the compound containing Al-Aqsa Mosque and other important Islamic spaces.
Israeli police said people were “entering after enhanced security checks that are conducted due to the current reality, alongside efforts to prevent any disturbances.” But they did not answer specific questions about whether there was a policy preventing certain worshippers, especially young men, from entering the mosque.
They said they were “maintaining a balance between the freedom of worship and the imperative of ensuring security.”