Qusra siege eases as UN reaches trapped families, but crisis deepens in Gaza

Humanitarian workers have reached Palestinian families who had been trapped for days by Israeli settlers in Qusra village in the northern West Bank, the UN said on Monday, as officials warned that the standoff must not become "the new normal."UN teams on the ground reached the families after they were confined to their homes following the establishment of an Israeli settlement outpost nearby and the imposition of tighter access restrictions, UN Spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric told reporters at the daily noon briefing.Some reliefA UNICEF team delivered water, food, medicines, hygiene items and recreational kits for children. As of Monday, however, the UN’s humanitarian office (OCHA) reported that three Palestinian families in the village remained surrounded by a heavy presence of Israeli forces and settlers.Separately, municipal workers managed to repair water and electricity connections that had been damaged over the past week, though only after facing serious impediments – Israeli settlers attacked the workers, and Israeli forces detained some of them, Mr. Dujarric said. Israeli forces also reportedly ordered a nearby Palestinian factory to suspend operations, affecting local livel...