The UN has welcomed an Israeli decision to “pause” fighting around a south Gaza route daily for aid deliveries but urged more “concrete measures” to unblock the humanitarian response.

“We welcome this announcement,” UN aid agency OCHA’s spokesman Jens Laerke said in an email to AFP, noting though that “this has yet to translate into more aid reaching people in need.”

“We hope this leads to further concrete measures by Israel to address longstanding issues preventing a meaningful humanitarian response in Gaza.”