Israel says it “will not thwart” the delivery of food, water and medicine from Egypt for civilians in Gaza as long as this aid does not “reach Hamas”.

The agreement was announced by US President Joe Biden just before he left Israel after visiting the country in a show of support.

The announcement follows pressure from Israel’s international allies to ease its 10-day siege on the Palestinian territory.

In a statement it says, “In light of President Biden’s demand, Israel will not thwart humanitarian supplies from Egypt as long as it is only food, water and medicine for the civilian population in the southern Gaza Strip. Israel will not allow any humanitarian aid from its territory to the Gaza Strip as long as our hostages are not returned.”

BBC News says Mr Biden has also backed Israel’s strong denial of any involvement in an explosion at the Al-Ahli al-Arabi hospital in Gaza, saying it was supported by “data” he had seen from the US defence department.

The strike on Tuesday reportedly killed nearly 500 people.

Palestinian officials blame an Israeli air raid, however Israel claims it was a misfired rocket launched by Palestinian Islamic Jihad.

That group has denied the allegation.

UN Under-Secretary-General Martin Griffiths has since reiterated that there are rules of war “whatever the provocation” in an address to the Security Council after the US vetoed humanitarian pauses in the conflict.

He said, “All parties to armed conflict must protect civilians and civilian objects and take constant care to spare them from any attack. We have discussed this in almost every other conflict in this chamber around the world; this one is no different. International law affords specific protections to medical personnel and facilities to ensure the wounded and sick receive the medical care they need. It was no coincidence that one of the first humanitarian leaders on the scene after those events on October 7 was our dear friend and leader Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus of the WHO. It is imperative that the parties respect their obligations under international humanitarian law and it is our collective responsibility [because] we are all involved in this.”

Al Jazeera says almost 3,450 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli attacks on Gaza since Hamas’s October 7th attack inside Israel, which killed more than 1,400 people.