AGENCIES

Doctors Without Borders charity said yesterday that a quarter of all young children screened at its clinics in Gaza were malnourished, blaming Israel’s “policy of starvation”.

The medical aid group known by its French acronym MSF said that “Israeli authorities’ deliberate use of starvation as a weapon in Gaza has reached unprecedented levels, with patients and healthcare workers themselves now fighting to survive”.

It said that its staff in the besieged and war-torn Palestinian territory were receiving growing numbers of malnourished patients.

“Across screenings of children aged six months to five years old and pregnant and breastfeeding women at MSF facilities last week, 25 percent were malnourished,” it said.

With fears of mass starvation growing, Britain, France and Germany were set to hold an emergency call to push for a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas and discuss steps towards Palestinian statehood.

Gaza hospitals yesterday recorded nine new deaths due to starvation and malnutrition over 24 hours, raising the total number of starvation deaths to 122. Meanwhile, Israel said it will allow foreign countries to parachute aid into Gaza.

In the ground, Israeli forces yesterday killed at least 11 Palestinians since dawn, including four aid seekers, reports Al Jazeera online.

Gaza ceasefire talks are expected to resume next week following Israel’s review of the response by Hamas, Egyptian state-affiliated Al Qahera News TV said yesterday, citing an Egyptian source.

Al Qahera said the Israeli delegation left one day after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu recalled the negotiating team for consultations.

Close Israeli ally the United States also recalled its delegation from the talks for consultations on Thursday, with US envoy Steve Witkoff accusing Hamas of failing to act in good faith in the talks.

Meanwhile, France intends to recognise a Palestinian state in September at the United Nations General Assembly, President Emmanuel Macron said later on Thursday in hopes of bringing peace to the region, but the plan drew angry rebukes from Israel and the United States.

“True to its historic commitment to a just and lasting peace in the Middle East, I have decided that France will recognise the state of Palestine,” Macron said.

“I will make this solemn announcement at the United The

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