Aid groups accuse Israel of ignoring US ultimatum on 'apocalyptic' Gaza

A coalition of international aid organisations has accused Israel of ignoring a US ultimatum that threatened sanctions if Israel did not implement a series of measures to counter the acute humanitarian crisis in Gaza.

- Jason Burke Jerusalem Andrew Roth Washington

The 30-day ultimatum, due to expire by today, was delivered on 13 October, and almost none of its demands have been met, the humanitarian groups say.

It is unclear what measures Israel's apparent failure to comply will trigger, but they may include a temporary halt to the supply of some munitions or other military assistance. Washington has not yet said whether it deems Israel to have complied. The US state department said yesterday that the secretary of state, Antony Blinken, had told a senior Israeli official the previous day that the steps Israel has taken must lead to actual improvement on the ground.

Asked how the US would urge Israel to improve the humanitarian situation, the State Department spokesman, Vedant Patel, said there was "no new policy or new assessment to offer but we'll continue to have our conversations with the Israeli government". "We have not made an assessment that Israel is violating US law," Patel said.