Dhaka, April 18 -- Hamas has accused Israel of openly using starvation as a weapon of war, a day after Israel's defence minister pledged to maintain a blockade on aid entering Gaza.
Aid deliveries into the Palestinian territory have been halted since March 2, weeks before Israel broke a temporary ceasefire by restarting aerial bombardment on March 18 and later relaunched its ground assault.
Speaking on Wednesday, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz described the blockade as a "main pressure lever" against Hamas, saying there were no plans to ease restrictions - despite UN warnings that malnutrition is rapidly worsening in Gaza.
In response, Hamas condemned Katz's remarks as "a public admission of committing a war crime".
Israel is "dep...