Israel not involved in Gaza food distribution under US aid plan: envoy

Israel would not be involved in food distribution under a US-led plan for the Gaza Strip but would provide "necessary military security", Washington's ambassador to Israel, Mike Huckabee, said on Friday.

Despite imposing a now two-month-long blockade of aid on Gaza, which it says is aimed at putting pressure on Palestinian militants Hamas, Israel has asserted there is no humanitarian crisis in the territory.

"The Israelis are going to be involved in providing necessary military security, because it is a war zone, but they will not be involved in the distribution of the food, or even in the bringing of the food into Gaza," Huckabee told reporters in Jerusalem.

The US-led initiative, which the State Department said on Thursday would be led by a new foundation to distribute aid, has been met with international criticism as it appears to sideline the United Nations and existing aid organisations, and would overhaul current humanitarian structures in Gaza.

Senior Hamas official Basem Naim said the plan risks "militarising aid".

Huckabee called upon the United Nations, "every NGO", and "every government" to take part.

"We invite people who have been concerned about it to join in this process," he said, expressing hope that the plan could be put into action "very soon".

He offered no timetable for the aid operation or any further information about the non-governmental foundation that would be involved.

Huckabee said there were "several partners who have already agreed to be a part of the effort", without naming them.

Israel imposed a blockade on Gaza on 2 March amid an impasse in talks with Hamas, and resumed its military offensive on 18 March, ending a two-month truce in the war.

Huckabee said that under the US plan, Israeli forces would provide security "at a distance from the distribution point to protect them from the ongoing calculus of the war", with "security... at the distribution points provided by contractors".

'Humanitarian crisis'

Israel accuses Hamas of diverting aid sent to Gaza. While Huckabee also blamed the Palestinian group, he said there was "obviously... a humanitarian crisis. That's why we need a humanitarian aid programme going in".

Amnesty International voiced alarm over the aid plan, saying in a statement, "a foundation contributing to Israel's illegal occupation of Palestinian territory would violate international law."

The UN agency for Palestinian refugees, UNRWA, which has been criticised by Israel and the United States, said it was "very difficult" to imagine any operation to deliver humanitarian aid in Gaza without its presence.

"It is impossible to replace UNRWA in a place like Gaza. We are the largest humanitarian organisation," the agency's spokeswoman, Juliette Touma, told a press conference in Geneva, when asked about the proposal.

Israel's war on Gaza has killed at least 52,787 people in Gaza, mostly civilians, according to data from the Gaza Health Ministry, which is considered reliable by the UN.