Pakistan to dispatch today 100 tons of humanitarian aid for Palestine
The development comes days after Israel allowed aid into Gaza and lifted months of blockade of the territory, following international outcry stoked by images of malnourished children, however, the scale is deemed woefully insufficient by international organizations.
Nearly 1,400 Palestinians have been killed in the Gaza Strip while waiting for aid since May 27, the majority by the Israeli army, the United Nations said on Friday. The Israeli army denies any targeting, insisting it only fires 'warning shots' when people approach too close to its positions.
The NDMA said it had completed preparations to send a 100-ton consignment carrying relief items for Palestine and the aid flight will depart from the Islamabad airport on Sunday evening.
'A hundred tons of aid will reach Amman, Jordan through a special flight,' it said. 'The aid consignment consists of food items and medicines.'
International organizations have for months condemned the restrictions imposed by the Israeli authorities on aid distribution in Gaza, including refusing to issue border crossing permits, slow customs clearance, limited access points, and imposing dangerous routes.
Pakistan, which does not have diplomatic ties with Israel, has consistently condemned Israeli military actions and called for the uninterrupted flow of humanitarian aid into Palestinian territory.
The South Asian country last month used its presidency of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) to refocus global attention on the crisis in Gaza.
'The NDMA will send a total of 200 tons of relief goods to Palestine through special flights,' it said, adding the authority had so far sent a total of 1,715 tons of aid to Palestine.
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