The Biden administration is at odds with Israel over a post-war plan for the enclave. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has ruled out the Palestinian Authority returning to govern Gaza and has chaffed at calls to take meaningful steps towards a two-state solution that could unlock the support of neighbouring Arab states.

Trucks carrying humanitarian aid into Gaza have begun moving ashore after arriving through a floating pier built by the US military, according to the US Central Command. Follow for live updates.

Israel continues to evade efforts to reach a ceasefire in its war with Hamas in Gaza, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, whose country has mediated in the conflict, told Arab leaders at a summit in Manama on Thursday.

With no resumption of deliveries in sight, officials fear the territory’s threadbare humanitarian relief effort could collapse altogether.

Egypt could consider downgrading relations with Israel if it presses on with a military operation in Gaza’s southernmost city of Rafah on the Egyptian border, an Egyptian official told CNN.

Israeli government splits over the war in Gaza broke open this week, after the Defence Minister publicly demanded a clear strategy from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as troops returned to battle Hamas fighters in areas thought to have been cleared months ago.

Israel’s military has seized and closed the Rafah crossing as it fights in the area, and officials say that Egypt is not allowing aid trucks to go to the other main crossing at Kerem Shalom.

South Africa is also seeking to force Israel to allow "unimpeded access" to Gaza for aid workers, journalists and investigators. The court is already considering a case brought by South Africa in January accusing Israel of committing genocide against the Palestinians in Gaza.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s two war-cabinet partners are openly challenging his indecision over postwar Gaza — even siding with the US in pushing for Palestinian rule of the devastated coastal strip.

Gaza Egypt has told Israel it will not reopen the Rafah border crossing with Gaza while Israeli troops remain on the Gazan side, sources have told The National, as the row between the two countries deepens.