Israel ‘intentionally starving’ Gaza civilians

JERUSALEM, Dec 18 (AFP/AP): The group Human Rights Watch (HRW) on Monday accused the Israeli government of intentionally starving civilians in Gaza as part of its offensive in the besieged Palestinian territory.

"The Israeli government is using starvation of civilians as a method of warfare in the occupied Gaza Strip, which is a war crime," the New York-based group charged in a report.

"Israeli forces are deliberately blocking the delivery of water, food and fuel, while wilfully impeding humanitarian assistance, apparently razing agricultural areas, and depriving the civilian population of objects indispensable to their survival," it added.

The Israeli government hit back at HRW, accusing it of being an "anti-Semitic and anti-Israeli organisation".

"Human Rights Watch ... did not condemn the attack on Israeli citizens and the massacre of October 7 and has no moral basis to talk about what's going on in Gaza if they turn a blind eye to the suffering and the human rights of Israelis," foreign ministry spokesman Lior Haiat told AFP.

The deadliest ever Gaza war began with the unprecedented attack by Hamas on October 7, when the group killed 1,139 people, mostly civilians, and abducted around 250, according to updated Israeli figures.

The health ministry in the Hamas-run territory says more than 18,800 people, mostly women and children, have died in Israel's campaign in Gaza.

Following months of fierce bombardment and fighting, most of Gaza's population has been displaced and people are grappling with shortages of food, water, fuel and medicine.

US defence secy visits Israel to

press for 'targeted approach'

US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin was expected to press Israel to wind down major combat operations in Gaza on a visit Monday, in the latest test of whether the U.S. can leverage its unwavering support for the offensive to blunt its devastating impact on Palestinian civilians.

France, the U.K. and Germany - some of Israel's closest allies - joined global calls for a cease-fire over the weekend, and Israeli protesters have demanded the government relaunch talks with Hamas on releasing more hostages after three were mistakenly killed by Israeli troops while waving a white flag.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has insisted that Israel will keep fighting until it removes Hamas from power, crushes its still-formidable military capabilities and returns the dozens of hostages still held by the group after its Oct. 7 attack, which ignited the war.

Israel finds large tunnel

adjacent to Gaza border

The Israeli military said Sunday it has discovered a large tunnel shaft in Gaza close to what was once a busy crossing into Israel, raising new questions about how Israeli surveillance missed such conspicuous preparations by Hamas for the militants' deadly Oct. 7 assault.

The entryway to the tunnel is just a few hundred meters from the heavily fortified Erez crossing and a nearby Israeli military base.

The military said that it stretches for more than four kilometers (2½ miles), links up with a sprawling tunnel network across Gaza and is wide enough for cars to pass through. The army said Sunday that the tunnel facilitated the transit of vehicles, militants and supplies in preparation for the Oct. 7 attack.

That day, militants used a rocket-propelled grenade to break past the portion of wall close to the Erez crossing and stormed the base, killing at least three soldiers and kidnapping some back to Gaza, the army said. It was one of several places along the border wall where militants easily blew past Israel's security defenses, entered Israeli territory and killed around 1,200 people and took about 240 others hostage.