Smotrich insists that, ‘Not even a grain of wheat will enter Gaza’

Palestinians wait in long queues to receive pots of food as they face food crisis following the end of the first phase of the ceasefire agreement, which lasted for 42 days, Israel stopped all humanitarian aid supplies from entering the Gaza Strip at the Jabalia Refugee Camp in Gaza Strip on March 11, 2025 [Mahmoud İssa/Anadolu Agency]

Far-right Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich vowed on Monday to prevent the entry of “a grain of wheat” into the blockaded Gaza Strip, according to the Israeli daily Yedioth Ahronoth.

Israel has kept Gaza’s border crossings closed since the beginning of March, halting the flow of humanitarian, relief and medical aid into the territory, leading to an unprecedented humanitarian crisis, according to local government and human rights reports.

UNICEF has announced that 21 malnutrition treatment centres have closed in Gaza due to Israel’ brutal military offensive.

The blockade was part of a renewed assault on Gaza that has killed nearly 1,400 people and wounded over 3,400 others since 18 March, despite a ceasefire and prisoner exchange agreement.

Smotrich said that he still prioritizes defeating the Palestinian group Hamas over the return of Israeli captives from Gaza.

Last week, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to escalate attacks on Gaza amid efforts to implement US President Donald Trump’s plan to displace Palestinians from the enclave.

More than 50,700 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza in a brutal Israeli onslaught since October 2023, most of them women and children. The International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants last November for Netanyahu and his former Defence Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza. Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on the enclave.

READ: Israel kills 490 children in 20 days in Gaza, officials say

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