Israel will allow a “basic amount” of food into the Gaza Strip, the prime minister’s office said Sunday, after facing mounting pressure to lift a total blockade imposed more than two months ago. The announcement came hours after the military said it had begun “extensive ground operations” in its intensified campaign in Gaza, and as Israel and Hamas engaged in indirect talks on a deal to potentially halt the fighting. Prime Minister’s office said that at the military’s recommendation, “Israel will authorise the entry of a basic amount of food for the population to ensure that a hunger crisis does not develop in the Gaza Strip”.
