The amount of humanitarian aid entering Gaza jumped dramatically on Sunday, with UN officials saying more than 630 trucks entered the poverty- and hunger-stricken enclave on the first day of the ceasefire, the highest number since the start of the war. It became. 15 months ago.
The ceasefire allows the U.N. World Food Program to “deploy urgently needed food aid on a large scale and begin to save war-torn regions from starvation,” the agency said. statement on sunday. tom UN relief chief Fletcher said: statement On Monday, it was announced that more than 300 trucks were headed to northern Gaza. Aid is most scarce in the Gaza Strip, with humanitarian officials warning of possible starvation.
During the war, fewer than 100 trucks entered the enclave per day, and deliveries were sometimes halted. Relief agencies have accused Israel of restricting deliveries with strict checks and closing border crossings, which Israel denies, adding that it is increasing its efforts per day to provide food, medicine, fuel, clean water and other necessities. He said at least 200 trucks are needed.
Juliet Touma, a spokeswoman for the main United Nations agency, said aid convoys appeared to have entered Gaza without incident as a cease-fire between Israel and Hamas took effect, and attempts to steal and loot aid were made on Sunday and Monday. was not reported. Support the Palestinians. He added that local police were stationed in some areas of the Gaza Strip to secure convoys, but in other areas no security was needed.
Uniformed police officers and armed fighters, rarely seen in the field during the war, have been seen in cities and towns across Gaza since the ceasefire took effect. This was a clear sign that Hamas, which has controlled the enclave for years, is still in control and intends to remain in power.
Videos posted on social media showed a convoy driving through the Gaza Strip on Sunday, with people quietly gathering on the side of the road and staying away from the truck. It was a stark contrast to the apocalyptic scenes of wartime aid deliveries, when desperate crowds piled into trucks to secure packages of food and sacks of flour, sometimes sparking violence.
“What was very remarkable was that none of the trucks that came in yesterday were looted,” said Nebal Farsak, a spokesman for the Palestinian Red Crescent Society. “This is the first time in 15 months that so many trucks have entered Gaza,” she added.
What was less clear was how efficiently and equitably aid had been distributed since entering Gaza, with some residents saying they had not yet received or even seen any aid. Ta. Touma said UNRWA officials and aid workers from other agencies were still sorting through aid that had arrived since Sunday before finally delivering it to people.
“Today is the second day of the ceasefire, and they say aid and flour are coming in, but unfortunately nothing has arrived yet,” said Mustafa al-Aloul, 22, from northern Gaza. “There’s literally nothing on the market right now,” he added.
Gaza’s Ministry of Social Development, which is part of the Hamas-led government, said in a statement on Monday that it had “made all arrangements to receive aid” and would grant aid organizations all necessary permits to receive and distribute aid. Ta. “Work will be carried out in a coordinated manner among all partners to ensure a fair distribution of aid to all citizens,” the ministry said, adding that aid will be provided to families both inside and outside shelter centers and tent camps. added.
Israeli authorities accuse Hamas of hoarding essential goods to provide services to its own members and control the population, with profiteers seizing aid and selling it on the black market. There are also reports that they do. Aid officials say the solution is to close the gap.
Touma said convoys entering Gaza also include trucks carrying goods for sale, but very few of them reached Gaza during the war.
“There were some products that people took for granted that were sorely missing from the market,” Touma said in an interview Monday. “It’s very good to have commercial supplies coming in as well, because we can’t make Gaza’s 2 million people dependent only on aid,” she added.
The World Food Program said Sunday it had delivered bags of ready-to-eat food and flour. It aims to send at least 150 truckloads of food to Gaza every day, along with other supplies, to restock bakeries and provide nutritional supplements to children facing malnutrition.
Ameera Harouda Contributed report from Qatar, matthew mpork big from London Vivian Yee From Cairo.
