UK PM Starmer says situation in Gaza 'getting worse by the day'

LONDON: British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said on Monday that the situation in Gaza was getting “worse by the day” and that it was important to ensure the Palestinian enclave receives more humanitarian aid urgently.

“The situation is intolerable in Gaza, and getting worse by the day,” Starmer told reporters in Scotland, when asked whether the UK would take any action over the issue.

“Which is why we are working with allies … to be absolutely clear that humanitarian aid needs to get in at speed and at volumes that it is not getting in at the moment, causing absolute devastation,” he added.

Meanwhile, Israeli fire killed at least three Palestinians and wounded dozens of others near an aid distribution site operated by the U.S.-based Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, local health authorities said on Monday.

The reported incident was the latest in a series underscoring the volatile security situation that has complicated aid delivery to Gaza, following the easing last month of an almost three-month Israeli blockade.

On Sunday, Palestinian and international officials said at least 31 people were killed and dozens wounded near the same site, one of four operated by the GHF in Rafah.

U.N. Secretary General Antonio Guterres said on Monday he was appalled by reports of Palestinians killed and injured while seeking aid in Gaza on Sunday, and called for an independent investigation.

The Gaza health ministry said Israeli strikes across the enclave had killed 51 people and wounded 500 others in the past 24 hours.

The Israeli military said it was aware of reports of casualties and the incident was being thoroughly looked into.

It said in a statement that troops operating overnight in Rafah, which is under full Israeli military control, in the southern Gaza Strip, had fired warning shots.