Egypt's state-affiliated TV says two fuel trucks set to enter Gaza

CAIRO (Reuters) -Egypt's state-affiliated Al Qahera News TV said on Sunday that two fuel trucks carrying 107 tons of diesel were set to enter Gaza, months after Israel restricted the entry of goods and aid into the Palestinian enclave.

Gaza's health ministry has said fuel shortages were hindering the operation of hospitals, adding that doctors had to prioritise services at some of their facilities. There was no immediate confirmation whether the trucks had entered Gaza.

Fuel entry has been rare since March, when Israel restricted the flow of aid and goods into the enclave in what it said was pressure on Hamas to release the remaining hostages it took in its October 2023 assault on Israel.

Dozens have died of malnutrition in Gaza in recent weeks, according to Gaza's health ministry. It said on Saturday that it had recorded seven more fatalities, including a child, since Friday.

Israel blames Hamas for the suffering in Gaza and says it is taking steps for more aid to reach its population, including pausing fighting for part of the day in some areas, air drops and announcing protected routes for aid convoys.

U.N. agencies have said that airdrops of food are insufficient and that Israel must let in far more aid by land and quickly ease the access to it.

COGAT, the Israeli military agency that coordinates aid, said 35 trucks have entered Gaza since June, nearly all of them in July.

More than 700 trucks of fuel entered the enclave in January and February during the ceasefire, before Israel resumed its major offensive in March.

The Gaza war began when Hamas killed more than 1,200 people and took 251 hostage in an attack on southern Israel on October 7, 2023, according to Israeli figures. Israel's offensive has since killed more than 60,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza health officials.

According to Israeli officials, 50 hostages now remain in Gaza, only 20 of whom are believed to be alive.

(Reporting by Jaidaa Taha, Nidal Al-Mughrabi. Additional reporting by Menna Alaa El-Din and Maayan Lubell; Editing by William Mallard and Toby Chopra)