(MENAFN- Gulf Times)

• Israeli forces kill six people in Gaza

Israel will only allow half the agreed number of aid trucks into Gaza starting Wednesday, in a setback to hopes food and supplies would be quickly ramped up to ease famine in the enclave.
COGAT, the Israeli military arm that oversees aid flows into Gaza, also notified the UN that no fuel or gas will be allowed into the enclave except for specific needs related to humanitarian infrastructure.
COGAT blamed Palestinian resistance movement Hamas for a slow release of hostage bodies for the decision to limit aid trucks to 300 daily. The group has said locating the bodies is difficult.
"Hamas violated the agreement regarding the release of the bodies of the hostages held in the Gaza Strip. As a result, the political leadership has decided to impose a number of sanctions related to the humanitarian agreement that was reached," read the COGAT note.
So far, Hamas has handed over four coffins of dead hostages, leaving at least 23 presumed dead and one unaccounted for still in Gaza. The group informed mediators it will begin transferring four more bodies to Israel later Tuesday.
"We have received this communication from the Israeli authorities," Olga Cherevko, a spokesperson for the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs in Gaza, told reporters. "We certainly very much hope that the bodies of the hostages are handed over and that the ceasefire continues to be implemented."
COGAT had said on Friday that it expected about 600 aid trucks to enter Gaza daily during the ceasefire. COGAT told the UN that 817 trucks had entered Gaza on Sunday, said Cherevko. Israel has delayed plans to open the southern Rafah border crossing to Egypt, three Israeli officials said.
US President Donald Trump declared an end to the Israel-Hamas conflict on Monday as the last living Israeli hostages were swapped for Palestinian detainees.
$70bn needed to rebuild Gaza
The United Nations has estimated the cost of rebuilding the Gaza Strip at approximately $70bn, based on the Interim Damage Assessment conducted by the UN, the European Union, and the World Bank.
This assessment, published on March 29, 2024, indicates that the total damage in Gaza amounted to $18.5bn by the end of January 2024. However, the full recovery and reconstruction costs are expected to be significantly higher, potentially reaching up to $70bn, depending on the scale of reconstruction efforts and the extent of international support.
Arafat nephew returns
A nephew of late Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat has returned to the West Bank after four years of self-exile, outlining a roadmap to secure peace in Gaza with Hamas transforming into a political party and declaring his readiness to help govern.
Nasser al-Qudwa, a prominent critic of the current Palestinian leadership, also urged "a serious confrontation of corruption in this country". He said President Mahmoud Abbas' Fatah Movement needed deep reform and must do more to counter Jewish settler violence in the Israeli-occupied West Bank.
Israeli forces kill 6 Gazans
Gaza's civil defence agency said Israeli forces killed six Palestinians in separate incidents Tuesday, while the military reported its troops had opened fire on suspects who approached their positions.
Mahmud Bassal, spokesman for the civil defence agency, which operates as a rescue force under Hamas, said five people were killed as they inspected their homes in the Shujaiya district of Gaza City.
In a similar incident, Bassal said an Israeli drone strike killed one person when it targeted a group of civilians in the town of Al-Fukhari, southeast of Khan Yunis city aid Gaza peace plan

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