White House calls for Israel to 'fully and rapidly' open new Gaza aid routes

The White House is urging Israel to swiftly open new aid routes into the Gaza Strip that were announced earlier on Thursday by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office.

"These steps, including a commitment to open the Ashdod port for the direct delivery of assistance into Gaza, to open the Erez crossing for a new route for assistance to reach north Gaza, and to significantly increase deliveries from Jordan directly into Gaza, must now be fully and rapidly implemented," National Security Council spokeswoman Adrienne Watson said in a statement.

Netanyahu announced Israel would allow the "temporary" delivery of aid through its Ashdod port and the Erez crossing into Gaza after he spoke with US President Joe Biden over the phone.

Biden had urged Netanyahu to take steps to increase aid deliveries and ensure the safety of humanitarian workers.

Israel to allow 'temporary' Gaza aid through Erez crossing

Israel's Security Cabinet has approved "immediate steps" to allow more humanitarian aid into Gaza, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office announced Friday.

A statement said the Erez crossing would be temporarily reopened for the first time since the Hamas terror attacks of October 7.

The key crossing into northern Gaza was destroyed during the attacks on Israel by the Palestinian Islamist group.

Israel also said it would allow its port in Ashdod to process aid shipments bound for Gaza.

"This increased aid will prevent a humanitarian crisis and is necessary to ensure the continuation of the fighting and to achieve the goals of the war," Netanyahu's office said.

It comes after Netanyahu spoke to US President Joe Biden on the phone.

Biden told the Israeli prime minister that US policy towards Gaza would be determined by whether Israel implements concrete and measurable steps to address civilian harm and the safety of aid workers in the Gaza Strip, the White House said.

Netanyahu and Biden spoke two days after an Israeli airstrike killed seven aid workers, one of which was a dual US-Canadian citizen.

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