Hunger in Gaza: 14,000 babies may die in 48 hours

• UK pauses trade talks with Israel, summons envoy 
• WHO says two million in Gaza starving 
• UN says extended Israeli offensive may leave Gaza 'unlivable'
• Netanyahu says 'images of mass starvation' can harm Israel's war

At least 14,000 babies in Gaza could die within 48 hours if more aid does not reach the starving communities, the UN warned yesterday, as Israel stepped up its military offensive to take control of "all of the Strip".

Gaza's civil defence agency said Israeli strikes killed at least 83 people yesterday across the war-ravaged Palestinian territory. At least 91 people were killed on Monday.

However, in a sign that Israel's friends' patience on the more than 20-month-long military carnage in Gaza is beginning to wear thin, the UK government yesterday paused free trade negotiations with Israel and slapped new sanctions on West Bank settlers.

Foreign Secretary David Lammy also announced his ministry was summoning the Israeli ambassador over Israel's expansion of its military operations in the occupied Palestinian territory.

"There are 14,000 babies that will die in the next 48 hours unless we can reach them," UN humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher said while speaking to the BBC's Radio 4 Today programme.

He said five aid trucks entered Gaza on Monday, a "drop in the ocean" after an 11-week blockade by Israel, and were yet to reach the communities in need.

The aid was allowed to enter Gaza following widespread condemnation of Israel's total blockade.

The World Health Organization said that Gaza's "two million people are starving".

The developments came after Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu on Monday vowed to take control of "all areas of the Strip".

Netanyahu also said it was necessary for Israel to prevent a famine in Gaza for "diplomatic reasons", after his government announced it would allow limited food aid into the territory.

He said aid had resumed because "images of mass starvation" could harm the legitimacy of the war effort.

Before the announcement of the punitive measures, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer told parliament that he, along with the leaders of France and Canada, was "horrified" by Israel's military escalation.

The leaders of Britain, France and Canada warned on Monday that they could take "concrete actions" against Israel if it did not stop military operations in Gaza and lift restrictions on aid.

However, Israel remained defiant. It said that external pressure will not change its course.

"The world is judging. History will judge them [Israel]," the British foreign secretary said while unveiling the measures, urging Netanyahu to agree to a ceasefire.

"Blocking aid, expanding the war, dismissing the concerns of your friends and partners – this is indefensible, and it must stop," he said.

Greek Foreign Minister Giorgos Gerapetritis also condemned the intensified Israeli offensive, saying the number of Palestinians killed in Gaza is intolerably high.

Meanwhile, Sweden's top diplomat yesterday said that the country would work within the EU to push for sanctions against certain Israeli ministers over Israel's treatment of civilian Palestinians in Gaza.

"Since we do not see a clear improvement for the civilians in Gaza, we need to raise the tone further," Foreign Minister Maria Malmer Stenergard said in a statement to AFP.

The Israeli army stepped up its offensive in Gaza on Saturday, saying it was aimed at defeating Hamas.

Israeli strikes have since killed scores of people in the besieged coastal territory, according to rescuers.

In its latest war update, the Israeli military yesterday said it carried out attacks on 100 targets in Gaza in the last 24 hours.

Gaza's health ministry said Israeli attacks have killed at least 83 people and wounded 290 during the past 24 hours.

Israel called up tens of thousands of reservists before expanding its military offensive, and sent in ground troops on Sunday.

Israel's security cabinet approved earlier this month a plan to expand the military operation, which one official said would include the "conquest" of Gaza and the displacement of its population.

Meanwhile, Philippe Lazzarini, head of the UN Palestinian refugee agency, yesterday warned that Israel's expanding operations could eventually create conditions where Palestinians are not able to live in Gaza.

"What I see for the time being is a continuation of the destruction, of the deaths and killing of the Palestinians in Gaza. And my fear is that we might reach a point where Gaza might not be a land any more for Palestinians to live in," he said in a media interview.

On Friday, President Donald Trump of the United States, Israel's strongest ally and main arms supplier, acknowledged that "a lot of people are starving" in Gaza.

"We're looking at Gaza. And we're going to get that taken care of," Trump told reporters in Abu Dhabi, on a regional tour that excluded Israel.

Yesterday, a UN spokesman said it had received permission to send "around 100" trucks of aid into Gaza.

The UN has long said Gaza, with a population of about 2.3 million, needs at least 500 trucks of aid and commercial goods daily to tackle the crisis.

However, no aid truck entered into Gaza till evening, reports Al Jazeera.

On the ground, aid agencies said acute hunger is spreading across Gaza.

According to the UN's Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC), more than 93 percent of children in Gaza -- about 930,000 -- are at risk of famine due to the ongoing war and blockade.

Since early March, at least 57 children have been reported to have died from malnutrition.

Families in Gaza are resorting to eating animal feed, expired flour and flour mixed with sand, while children suffer from hunger-induced illnesses such as diarrhoea and extreme fatigue.

Meanwhile, Qatar's prime minister said Israel's military offensive in Gaza had undermined peace efforts' momentum after the release of US-Israeli hostage Edan Alexander.

Qatar has, alongside Egypt and the United States, mediated efforts to end the war.

"This irresponsible, aggressive behaviour undermines any potential chance for peace," Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al-Thani said at the Qatar Economic Forum.

Gaza's health ministry said at least 3,340 people have been killed since Israel resumed strikes on March 18, taking the war's overall toll to 53,573.