From the Liveblog of
Wednesday, January 24, 2024
Keeping ministers in the dark, Netanyahu said to okay 6-month’s worth of flour to Gaza
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu concealed his decision to let tens of thousands of tons of flour enter the Gaza Strip even from his ministers and members of the narrow war cabinet, as well as from the public, Channel 12 news reports.
The report also says the approval is for an amount of flour that will be enough for the Strip’s needs for half a year, and that the decision has started to be implemented.
The report does not cite sources.
Netanyahu has previously denied okaying the entry of 150 trucks of flour, a decision announced by the United States last week.
Israel initially restricted aid into Gaza in the wake of the October 7 massacre.
On Friday, the US welcomed an Israeli decision to permit the entry of large shipments of flour via Ashdod, located some 40 kilometers (25 miles) from the Gaza border.
Jerusalem has refrained from announcing the decision, ostensibly due to its unpopularity among large swaths of the public while 132 hostages remain in Gaza; however, an Israeli official confirmed to The New York Times on Sunday that the security cabinet approved the plan on Friday.
A US official quoted by the Times said that US Secretary of State Antony Blinken had pressed the issue when he was in Israel earlier this month.
