Israeli forces continue bombarding Gaza, killing at least 25 Palestinians since dawn, including 11 people who burned to death in Khan Younis.
Hamas has called for a wave of global protests, strikes, and sit-ins this weekend, urging continued mobilisation until Israel’s assault on Gaza ends and the siege is lifted.
“We value the global movement in support of Gaza and against the Zionist aggression,” the group said, urging people across the Arab world, as well as in Asia, the Americas, and Western countries, to step up their actions.
It praised the ongoing demonstrations as “a rejection of the genocidal war” against Palestinians being committed by Israel.
Hamas also backed a call by Islamic institutions naming Saturday, April 26, as a day of widespread strike action in shops and malls across the Muslim world.
Such actions, it said, represent “an expression of solidarity with our people and our right to freedom and independence”.
Philippe Lazzarini, the commissioner-general of the United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees, UNRWA, has issued a stark warning as Gaza endures 50 days of siege by Israeli forces, describing the blockade as “deliberate and man-made”.
“Gaza has become a land of desperation,” Lazzarini posted on X, warning that more than two million people – mostly women and children – are being collectively punished.
The UN official said vital aid, including nearly 3,000 trucks of UNRWA supplies, is stuck outside Gaza, unable to enter while food and medicine inside the Strip rot or run out.
“Hollow words of condemnation” must now turn into action, he said, calling for an immediate end to the siege, a return to the ceasefire, and the release of captives.
“Hunger is spreading,” he added. “Humanitarian aid is being used as a bargaining chip – a weapon of war.”
