UN Aid Convoy Delivers Lifesaving Supplies To Gaza

The United Nations has reported that over 90 lorry loads of humanitarian aid have been collected by UN teams inside the Gaza Strip after a three-day delay at the Kerem Shalom crossing. The aid, which includes flour, baby food, and medical equipment, was picked up on Wednesday night and taken to warehouses for distribution. Several bakeries have begun producing bread with the flour, and the World Food Programme (WFP) has stated that a handful of bakeries it supports in central and southern Gaza have resumed bread production.

However, the UN has emphasized that the aid delivered is “nowhere near enough to meet the vast needs in Gaza”. Humanitarian organizations have warned of acute levels of hunger among the 2.1 million population, amid significant shortages of basic foods and skyrocketing prices. According to Palestinian Authority Health Minister Majed Abu Ramadan, 29 children and elderly people have died from “starvation-related” causes in the last couple of days.

Antoine Renard, a senior WFP official, highlighted the challenges in collecting aid due to the Israeli military’s approved route, which aid agencies consider dangerous. He noted that each truck full of flour is worth around $400,000 at market prices in Gaza and emphasized the need for “hundreds of trucks daily” traveling along a safe route to warehouses. The WFP has warned that bringing in at least 100 aid lorries daily would only meet the “very minimum” of the population’s food needs.

The situation in Gaza is described as “heart-breaking” by Mandy Blackman, a nurse running a charity field hospital in southern Gaza. Patients arriving at the hospital are visibly thinner, and staff can only offer them one meal a day. Blackman stated, “People are having to relocate constantly and are not able to feed their children. No-one knows what’s going to happen the next day. There’s constant suffering and constant anxiety.”

Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has announced a plan to allow a limited amount of food into Gaza, stating that it would prevent a humanitarian crisis and enable the Israeli military to continue its operations. However, the UN and other agencies have refused to cooperate with a proposed US-Israeli plan, citing concerns that it would “weaponise aid” and force people to travel long distances for food. Renard emphasized, “The food should go to the people, not the people to the food”.

The conflict has resulted in significant displacement and casualties, with almost 600,000 people displaced since March and at least 53,762 people killed in Gaza since the Israeli military campaign began in response to Hamas’s cross-border attack.