Live updates: US-backed group starts aid operations in Gaza while Israeli strikes pound region

A U.S.-backed group said it has opened a new aid system in Gaza and began delivering food to Palestinians on Monday while Israeli airstrikes continued to pound the territory, killing dozens.

The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation is taking over the handling of desperately needed aid under a new, U.S. and Israeli-backed system despite concerns raised about the group from the United Nations and the recent resignation of its executive director.

Israel says more aid is entering Gaza after it blocked all food, medicine and fuel for 2 1/2 months. It let a trickle of aid enter last week after experts’ warnings of famine and pressure from some top allies. It says Hamas has been siphoning off aid, but U.N. aid groups say there is no significant divergence of aid.

Israeli strikes on Monday killed dozens including children, local health officials said. Israel's military said it targeted militants.

Israel has vowed to seize control of Gaza and fight until Hamas is destroyed or disarmed and exiled, and until the militant group returns the remaining 58 hostages seized in the Oct. 7, 2023, attack that sparked the war.

Hamas-led militants killed some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducted 251 people in the 2023 attack. Israel’s retaliatory offensive has killed around 54,000 Palestinians, according to the Gaza Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between civilians and combatants in its count.

Here's the latest:

A new aid system in Gaza has opened its first distribution hubs in the territory.

The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation said it began delivering food to Palestinians at distribution sites on Monday. The aid comes at a times when Palestinians are facing growing hunger after Israel’s nearly three-month blockade to pressure Hamas.

The group did not say how many truckloads of food had been delivered to its hubs or where the sites were operating.

It did say in statement that more trucks with aid will be delivered on Tuesday and that the amounts of aid will increase each day.

The Israeli military says 170 trucks with food, medicine and medical supplies crossed into the Gaza Strip on Monday.

It says the trucks belonging to the United Nations and other aid groups came in through the Kerem Shalom crossing after a rigorous security inspection.

After pressure from allies and warnings of famine, Israel started letting in some aid last week after a nearly three-month blockade. U.N. agencies say much more is needed, pointing out that around 600 trucks a day entered during the recent ceasefire to meet basic needs.

Colombia’s newly appointed ambassador to the Palestinian territories says the South American nation is willing to provide medical treatment to “thousands” of Palestinians who have been injured during Israel’s military offensive in the Gaza Strip.

Ambassador Jorge Ivan Ospina told The Associated Press that Colombia is particularly interested in providing medical treatment to children who have been wounded in Israeli strikes. He didn’t say how patients would be evacuated to Colombia, or how Palestinian families could seek treatment there.

“The world cannot turn a blind eye” to civilians in Gaza and the occupied West Bank, Ospina said. “People cannot die of hunger. They must receive immediate medical attention and must be rehabilitated.”

Colombia, which backs a two-state solution to the conflict, broke off diplomatic ties with Israel last year.

The Israeli prime minister spoke at a special government meeting marking Israel’s conquest of the city’s eastern sector.

The meeting was held in a divisive east Jerusalem location known as The City of David. It is a popular archaeological and tourist site in the Palestinian neighborhood of Silwan, with some of the oldest remains of the 3,000-year-old city. Critics accuse the site’s operators of pushing a nationalistic agenda at the expense of local Palestinian residents.

At the meeting, the government approved a resolution to encourage and financially support foreign countries in establishing or relocating their embassies to Jerusalem, according to a joint statement by Foreign Minister Gideon Saar and the Minister for Jerusalem Affairs and Jewish Heritage Meir Porush.

Israel captured east Jerusalem, home to the city’s most sensitive holy sites, in the 1967 Mideast war and annexed the area in a move that is not internationally recognized. The Palestinians seek east Jerusalem as the capital of a future independent state.

"Jerusalem, our eternal capital, was reunited 58 years ago in the Six-Day War. It will never be divided again,” Netanyahu said in remarks at the start of the meeting. “We will preserve a united, complete Jerusalem, and the sovereignty of Israel.”

Groups of young Israelis made their way through Muslim neighborhoods of Jerusalem’s Old City ahead of an annual march marking Israel’s conquest of the eastern part of the city.

Palestinian shopkeepers had closed up early and police lined the narrow alleys ahead of the march, which often becomes rowdy and sometimes violent. The march commemorates Jerusalem Day, marking Israel’s 1967 capture of east Jerusalem, including the Old City and its holy sites sacred to Jews, Christians and Muslims.

Police said they had detained a number of individuals to prevent confrontations.

Friedrich Merz told a forum organized by WDR television that “what the Israeli army is now doing in Gaza — I don’t understand, to say it openly.”

"Affecting the civilian population to the extent that has increasingly been the case in recent days can no longer be justified by a fight against the terrorism of Hamas,” Merz said.

The Israeli protesters who stormed the UNRWA compound in east Jerusalem were joined by Yulia Malinovsky, one of the legislators behind an Israeli law that banned UNRWA.

Israel has accused the agency, which is the biggest aid provider in Gaza, of being infiltrated by Hamas, allegations denied by the U.N.

There was no immediate comment from Israeli police.

The U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees says Israeli protesters have broken into its compound in east Jerusalem.

UNRWA West Bank coordinator Roland Friedrich said around a dozen Israeli protesters, including a member of parliament, forcefully entered the compound on Monday.

National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir said Jewish worship was allowed at a flashpoint Jerusalem holy site as he visited the holy hilltop compound, known to Jews as the Temple Mount and to Muslims as the Noble Sanctuary.

“Today, thank God, it is possible to pray on the Temple Mount, to bow (in prayer) on the Temple Mount,” he said, according to a statement from his office.

Palestinians and the broader Muslim world view Jewish visits to the sacred site as a provocation. An understanding between Israeli and religious authorities at the site holds that Jews cannot pray there.

Hamas is warning Palestinians in Gaza not to cooperate with the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, claiming that the group aims to further Israel’s plans to transfer Gaza’s population to other countries. Hamas didn't offer evidence for the claim.

U.N. agencies and aid groups have refused to cooperate with the GHF, saying it would fail to meet Gaza’s mounting needs, give Israel control over who receives aid and cause mass displacement by forcing Palestinians to relocate to distribution hubs.

Noem's visit comes in solidarity with Israel after the fatal shooting in Washington last week of two Israeli Embassy employees.

Noem said that President Donald Trump had asked her to come to Israel after the shootings of Sarah Milgrim, an American citizen, and Yaron Lischinsky, an Israeli. A suspect identified as Elias Rodriguez said he “did it for Palestine,” according to court papers.

Noem told Israel's leaders that Trump “stands with you as we fight this hatred in the world.” She said Milgrim and Lischinsky’s lives “will bring a unity among us that will help us defeat our enemies.”

The military says the projectiles were fired toward southern Israel. Two landed inside Gaza and one was intercepted by Israel’s missile defense system.

Militants in Gaza still occasionally fire rockets toward Israel, a sign of their tenacity even after more than 19 months of grueling war in the territory and an intensifying Israeli offensive.

The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation's executive director, Jake Wood, said he was stepping down because the GHF would not be allowed to operate independently.

The foundation — made up of former humanitarian, government and military officials — is the linchpin of a new aid system for Gaza that would wrest aid distribution away from aid groups who have traditionally carried out the task.

“Our trucks are loaded and ready to go,” GHF said, adding that it plans to reach more than 1 million Palestinians by the end of the week.

It was the strongest language to date from Anthony Albanese on the Gaza humanitarian crisis.

“It is outrageous that there be a blockade of food and supplies to people who are in need in Gaza,” Albanese told reporters in the Australian capital Canberra on Monday.

Albanese said that Australia finds “Israel’s excuses and explanations completely untenable and without credibility.”

"People are starving, and the idea that a democratic state withholds supply is an outrage,” he added.

Israeli soldiers are seen during an army operation in Tulkarem, West Bank on Monday, May 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Majdi Mohammed)

Walaa Al-Kilani, center, mourns her mother and brother, who were killed when an Israeli military strike hit a school sheltering displaced residents, at Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City, Monday, May 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Jehad Alshrafi)

Israeli police officers assist a Palestinian man after he was pushed by Israelis as they mark Jerusalem Day, an Israeli holiday celebrating the capture of east Jerusalem in the 1967 Mideast war, in Jerusalem's Old City, Monday, May 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)

U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem poses for a photo with Israel's Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar and U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee during a memorial event honoring Yaron Lishinsky and Sarah Milgrom in Jerusalem, Monday, May 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon, Pool)

U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, center, and Israel's Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar, right, plant a tree as U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee looks on, in Jerusalem, Monday, May 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon, Pool)

Palestinians inspect the damage at school used as a shelter by displaced residents that was hit by Israeli military strike and killed at least 36 people, in Gaza City, on Monday, May 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Jehad Alshrafi)

Bodies of Palestinians killed in the Israeli army airstrikes are brought to Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City, Monday, May 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Jehad Alshrafi)

Palestinians inspect the damage at school used as a shelter by displaced residents that was hit by Israeli military strike and killed at least 36 people, in Gaza City, on Monday, May 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Jehad Alshrafi)

Trucks load with humanitarian aid for the Gaza Strip are seen at the Kerem Shalom Crossing in southern Israel, Tuesday May 20, 2025. (AP Photo/Maya Alleruzzo)

FILE.- Trucks line up at the Egyptian side of the Rafah border crossing between Egypt and the Gaza Strip after Israel blocked the entry of aid trucks into Gaza, Sunday, March 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Mohamed Arafat,File)

Israeli tanks manuver inside Gaza Strip as seen from southern Israel, Monday, May 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)

A group of Buddhist monks and their rescue dog are striding single file down country roads and highways across the South, captivating Americans nationwide and inspiring droves of locals to greet them along their route.

In their flowing saffron and ocher robes, the men are walking for peace. It's a meditative tradition more common in South Asian countries, and it's resonating now in the U.S., seemingly as a welcome respite from the conflict, trauma and politics dividing the nation.

Their journey began Oct. 26, 2025, at a Vietnamese Buddhist temple in Texas, and is scheduled to end in mid-February in Washington, D.C., where they will ask Congress to recognize Buddha’s day of birth and enlightenment as a federal holiday. Beyond promoting peace, their highest priority is connecting with people along the way.

“My hope is, when this walk ends, the people we met will continue practicing mindfulness and find peace,” said the Venerable Bhikkhu Pannakara, the group’s soft-spoken leader who is making the trek barefoot. He teaches about mindfulness, forgiveness and healing at every stop.

Preferring to sleep each night in tents pitched outdoors, the monks have been surprised to see their message transcend ideologies, drawing huge crowds into churchyards, city halls and town squares across six states. Documenting their journey on social media, they — and their dog, Aloka — have racked up millions of followers online. On Saturday, thousands thronged in Columbia, South Carolina, where the monks chanted on the steps of the State House and received a proclamation from the city's mayor, Daniel Rickenmann.

At their stop Thursday in Saluda, South Carolina, Audrie Pearce joined the crowd lining Main Street. She had driven four hours from her village of Little River, and teared up as Pannakara handed her a flower.

“There’s something traumatic and heart-wrenching happening in our country every day,” said Pearce, who describes herself as spiritual, but not religious. “I looked into their eyes and I saw peace. They’re putting their bodies through such physical torture and yet they radiate peace.”

Hailing from Theravada Buddhist monasteries across the globe, the 19 monks began their 2,300 mile (3,700 kilometer) trek at the Huong Dao Vipassana Bhavana Center in Fort Worth.

Their journey has not been without peril. On Nov. 19, as the monks were walking along U.S. Highway 90 near Dayton, Texas, their escort vehicle was hit by a distracted truck driver, injuring two monks. One of them lost his leg, reducing the group to 18.

This is Pannakara's first trek in the U.S., but he's walked across several South Asian countries, including a 112-day journey across India in 2022 where he first encountered Aloka, an Indian Pariah dog whose name means divine light in Sanskrit.

Then a stray, the dog followed him and other monks from Kolkata in eastern India all the way to the Nepal border. At one point, he fell critically ill and Pannakara scooped him up in his arms and cared for him until he recovered. Now, Aloka inspires him to keep going when he feels like giving up.

“I named him light because I want him to find the light of wisdom,” Pannakara said.

The monk's feet are now heavily bandaged because he's stepped on rocks, nails and glass along the way. His practice of mindfulness keeps him joyful despite the pain from these injuries, he said.

Still, traversing the southeast United States has presented unique challenges, and pounding pavement day after day has been brutal.

“In India, we can do shortcuts through paddy fields and farms, but we can’t do that here because there are a lot of private properties,” Pannakara said. “But what’s made it beautiful is how people have welcomed and hosted us in spite of not knowing who we are and what we believe.”

In Opelika, Alabama, the Rev. Patrick Hitchman-Craig hosted the monks on Christmas night at his United Methodist congregation.

He expected to see a small crowd, but about 1,000 people showed up, creating the feel of a block party. The monks seemed like the Magi, he said, appearing on Christ’s birthday.

“Anyone who is working for peace in the world in a way that is public and sacrificial is standing close to the heart of Jesus, whether or not they share our tradition,” said Hitchman-Craig. “I was blown away by the number of people and the diversity of who showed up.”

After their night on the church lawn, the monks arrived the next afternoon at the Collins Farm in Cusseta, Alabama. Judy Collins Allen, whose father and brother run the farm, said about 200 people came to meet the monks — the biggest gathering she’s ever witnessed there.

“There was a calm, warmth and sense of community among people who had not met each other before and that was so special,” she said.

Long Si Dong, a spokesperson for the Fort Worth temple, said the monks, when they arrive in Washington, plan to seek recognition of Vesak, the day which marks the birth and enlightenment of the Buddha, as a national holiday.

“Doing so would acknowledge Vesak as a day of reflection, compassion and unity for all people regardless of faith,” he said.

But Pannakara emphasized that their main goal is to help people achieve peace in their lives. The trek is also a separate endeavor from a $200 million campaign to build towering monuments on the temple’s 14-acre property to house the Buddha’s teachings engraved in stone, according to Dong.

The monks practice and teach Vipassana meditation, an ancient Indian technique taught by the Buddha himself as core for attaining enlightenment. It focuses on the mind-body connection — observing breath and physical sensations to understand reality, impermanence and suffering. Some of the monks, including Pannakara, walk barefoot to feel the ground directly and be present in the moment.

Pannakara has told the gathered crowds that they don't aim to convert people to Buddhism.

Brooke Schedneck, professor of religion at Rhodes College in Memphis, Tennessee, said the tradition of a peace walk in Theravada Buddhism began in the 1990s when the Venerable Maha Ghosananda, a Cambodian monk, led marches across war-torn areas riddled with landmines to foster national healing after civil war and genocide in his country.

“These walks really inspire people and inspire faith,” Schedneck said. “The core intention is to have others watch and be inspired, not so much through words, but through how they are willing to make this sacrifice by walking and being visible.”

On Thursday, Becki Gable drove nearly 400 miles (about 640 kilometers) from Cullman, Alabama, to catch up with them in Saluda. Raised Methodist, Gable said she wanted some release from the pain of losing her daughter and parents.

“I just felt in my heart that this would help me have peace,” she said. “Maybe I could move a little bit forward in my life.”

Gable says she has already taken one of Pannakara’s teachings to heart. She’s promised herself that each morning, as soon as she awakes, she’d take a piece of paper and write five words on it, just as the monk prescribed.

“Today is my peaceful day.”

Freelance photojournalist Allison Joyce contributed to this report.

Associated Press religion coverage receives support through the AP’s collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content.

Buddhist monks who are participating in the, "Walk For Peace," get lunch Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026, in Saluda, S.C. (AP Photo/Allison Joyce)

Aloka rests with Buddhist monks who are participating in the, "Walk For Peace," Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026, in Saluda, S.C. (AP Photo/Allison Joyce)

A sign is seen greeting the Buddhist monks who are participating in the, "Walk For Peace," Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026, in Saluda, S.C. (AP Photo/Allison Joyce)

Supporters pray with Buddhist monks who are participating in the, "Walk For Peace," Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026, in Saluda, S.C. (AP Photo/Allison Joyce)

Supporters watch Buddhist monks who are participating in the, "Walk For Peace," Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026, in Saluda, S.C. (AP Photo/Allison Joyce)

A Buddhist monk ties a prayer bracelet around the wrist of Josey Lee, 2-months-old, during the, "Walk For Peace," Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026, in Saluda, S.C. (AP Photo/Allison Joyce)

Bhikkhu Pannakara, a spiritual leader, speaks to supporters during the, "Walk For Peace," Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026, in Saluda, S.C. (AP Photo/Allison Joyce)

Buddhist monks participate in the, "Walk For Peace," Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026, in Saluda, S.C. (AP Photo/Allison Joyce)

Buddhist monks participate in the, "Walk For Peace," Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026, in Saluda, S.C. (AP Photo/Allison Joyce)

Bhikkhu Pannakara leads other buddhist monks in the, "Walk For Peace," Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026, in Saluda, S.C. (AP Photo/Allison Joyce)

Audrie Pearce greets Buddhist monks who are participating in the, "Walk For Peace," Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026, in Saluda, S.C. (AP Photo/Allison Joyce)

Bhikkhu Pannakara, a spiritual leader, speaks to supporters during the, "Walk For Peace," Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026, in Saluda, S.C. (AP Photo/Allison Joyce)

Buddhist monks who are participating in the, "Walk For Peace," arrive in Saluda, Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026, in Saluda, S.C. (AP Photo/Allison Joyce)

Buddhist monks who are participating in the, "Walk For Peace," are seen with their dog, Aloka, Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026, in Saluda, S.C. (AP Photo/Allison Joyce)