"Israel's policy is clear: no humanitarian aid will enter Gaza ... No one is currently planning to allow any humanitarian aid into Gaza, and there are no preparations to enable such aid," Katz stated.

On 2 March, Israel reinforced its deadly blockade on Gaza, barring the entry of nutritional, medical, and humanitarian aid, effectively weaponizing starvation against the 2.3 million native Palestinian population.

"The humanitarian situation is now likely the worst it has been in the 18 months since the outbreak of hostilities," said the UN's Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).

OCHA stated no supplies had reached Gaza for a month and a half, and medical supplies, fuel, water and other essentials are in short supply.

"Due to the closure of the crossings compounded by restrictions within Gaza, dwindling supplies have forced them (aid workers) to ration and reduce deliveries to make the most of the remaining stocks," OCHA said.

On 18 March, Tel Aviv unilaterally ended a two-month truce with Hamas and resumed its war on Gaza.

Since then, Israeli airstrikes across Gaza have killed over 1,600, bringing the total Palestinian death toll since 7 October 2023 to over 51,000, most of them women and children.

The Israeli defence minister added that his troops will remain in the Gaza Strip, Lebanon, and Syria indefinitely.

“Unlike in the past, the Israeli military is not evacuating areas that have been cleared and seized,” Katz said.

The military “will remain in the security zones in any temporary or permanent situation in Gaza — as in Lebanon and Syria," he added.

In recent weeks, Israel has expanded its footprint in Gaza, controlling over 50 percent of the territory, squeezing Palestinians into shrinking wedges of land.

Israel's bombardment and ground operations have left vast areas of the territory uninhabitable and have displaced around 90 percent of the population multiple times.

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