Humanitarian and human rights organisations have said a four-day truce between Israel and Hamas is too short and have called for more time to deliver vital aid to the Gaza Strip, AFP reports.

On a conference call of major NGOs, the executive director of Amnesty International USA, Paul O’Brien, said the lull was “not enough and it’s certainly not enough in human rights terms”.

Jason Lee, Save the Children director for the Palestinian Territories, said while the truce was “a welcome step in the right direction, it cannot replace a ceasefire”.

“There must be a ceasefire from an operational perspective and from a safety perspective,” he added.

The executive director of medical charity Medecins du Monde, Joel Weiler, said the truce could bring some respite.

“We may be able to bring drugs, fuel, but we will not be able to manage it correctly and to reach people that are in need,” he added.

Danila Zizi, Handicap International director for the Palestinian Territories, agreed, calling temporary lulls in the fighting “nowhere near enough to reach the population in need”.

“In four hours or four days, we cannot deliver food to two million people, care to 2m people,” she said.