An Israeli defence official said Monday aid to rebuild the conflict-battered Gaza Strip must bypass its Islamist rulers Hamas, and instead flow through an international "mechanism" to reach people directly.

Israel has enforced a blockade on impoverished Gaza since 2007, when Hamas seized control of the crowded enclave.

Israel argues the measures are necessary to isolate Hamas, considered a terrorist organisation by most Western countries.

The official — who was not authorised to speak publicly on the matter — said the aid must be managed to rehabilitate Gaza "without posing a threat to Israel".

The official, who spoke a day before US Secretary of State Antony Blinken visits the region, said aid deliveries would have to involve the West Bank-based Palestinian Authority, which has worked with Hamas in the past to deliver donations to Gaza.

US President Joe Biden said in a statement that part of Blinken's trip would include working on "the coordinated international effort to ensure immediate assistance reaches Gaza in a way that benefits the people there and not Hamas".

Israel pounded Gaza for 11 days with air strikes and artillery, while Hamas fired more than 4,000 rockets from the enclave, before a ceasefire last Friday.

Israeli strikes ravaged Gaza's infrastructure, as well as made at least 6,000 people homeless, the UN's humanitarian agency says.

Up to 800,000 are without access to clean water in the coastal enclave.

Egypt has pledged $500 million to support rebuilding, while the UN said it has released $18.5 million for humanitarian aid in Gaza.

Israel appoints new Mossad spy chief
Jerusalem (AFP) May 24, 2021 –

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced Monday a new head of the Mossad intelligence agency, David Barnea, a key post in the Jewish state's defence from outside threats, especially arch-rival Iran.

Barnea, 56, who served as a combat soldier in the elite Sayeret Matkal commando unit, joined Mossad in 1996.

He served from 2019 as the deputy head, according to Netanyahu's office.

In a ceremony marking the new appointment, Netanyahu hinted at steps Israel could take to thwart Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons.

Global powers have been meeting in Vienna since early April in a bid to bring Washington back to the 2015 nuclear deal with Tehran, which the US left in 2018.

The withdrawal under then president Donald Trump and re-imposition of sanctions led to Iran stepping up its nuclear activities.

Israel opposes the deal.

"There could be a situation in which our highest goal — to guarantee that the Ayatollahs don't stop the 2,000-year existence of the Jewish people — will require us to take brave and independent decisions," Netanyahu said, in remarks distributed by his office.

Iran maintains its nuclear programme is peaceful.

Barnea will replace Yossi Cohen, who has led the agency since 2015.

Cohen played a prominent role in recent deals to normalise ties with Arab countries. He travelled to the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain, as the US brokered deals between them and Israel.

He also reportedly joined Netanyahu on a 2020 visit to Saudi Arabia, for talks with Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman. Saudi Arabia denies the meeting occurred.

Cohen was linked to Israel's killing last year of Iranian nuclear scientist Mohsen Fakhrizadeh, although Israel has not commented on the incident.

Barnea's appointment was expected.

In December, Netanyahu announced that he had chosen a person identified as "D" as a replacement for Cohen, but required approval by a committee for top civil service posts.