Just 150 aid trucks depart to Gaza from Egypt as Israel announces ‘tactical suspension of military activities'

Mada

4 days ago

A convoy of just 150 aid trucks left Egypt early on Sunday morning for the Karam Abu Salem crossing in preparation for entry into the Gaza Strip.
The supplies were the first to leave out of thousands of aid trucks that have remained stationary in North Sinai for weeks near Egypt's border with Gaza, as Palestinians endure mass starvation imposed by Israel through almost five months of siege.
The window for the small aid delivery from Egypt opened after Israel announced a limited pause to fighting on Saturday night, intended to 'expand the volume of humanitarian aid entering the strip.'
The Israeli government is under international pressure to loosen its siege on the millions of people in the strip after starvation-induced deaths accelerated in recent days, with the Gaza Health Ministry announcing over 30 deaths caused by malnutrition, many of whom were children.
Despite opposition to the step from officials in Tel Aviv, including National Security Minister Itmar Ben Gvir, who called for a 'complete stop' to humanitarian aid on Saturday night, the Israeli military announced that it would implement a daily 'tactical suspension of military activities' for 'humanitarian purposes' in the areas of Gaza City, Deir al-Balah and Mawasi, with military activity still ongoing in the majority of the coastal enclave. The pauses are to begin Sunday and last from 10 am to 8 pm until further notice, the military said.
Following two days of preparations at Egyptian Red Crescent warehouses in Arish city, a source from the agency said that trucks belonging to the Egyptian and Emirati Red Crescent Societies and the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP), carrying flour, food supplies, medicine and medical supplies departed toward Karam Abu Salem on Sunday morning. A statement published by the agency said the shipment included around 840 tons of flour and 450 tons of various food items.
Trucks arriving from North Sinai to the Karam Abu Salem crossing — which joins Egyptian, Israeli and Palestinian territory and is under Israeli supervision — were required to unload their cargo on the Israeli side for inspection before reloading onto Palestinian trucks for entry into Gaza, the red crescent source said.
All 150 trucks had crossed from the Egyptian side by 6 am on Sunday, the source added. But as of 8 am, the Israeli military was yet to greenlight the aid's entry into Gaza, according to a WFP official in Egypt cited by the BBC.
The limited volumes join a trickle of aid still reaching Gaza. The WFP said on Sunday it delivered only 350 trucks of food aid into Gaza last week 'under extremely challenging circumstances that put civilians and aid workers at tremendous risk.'
Without permission from Israel to move along secured routes without the risk of being subjected to Israeli fire, WFP convoys have been exposed to looting in south Gaza by the armed group operating in Israeli-held Rafah, while convoys entering the north last week were rushed by crowds of thousands of people waiting to access limited supplies of aid.
The agency mourned the loss of 'countless lives' last week, after Israeli forces shot and killed 80 aid-seekers in a crowd of people waiting to receive aid from WFP trucks entering north Gaza at the Zikim crossing.
As part of its tactical pause, the Israeli military also said that it designated secured corridors for aid convoys, coordinated with the UN and international organizations, to be maintained daily from 6 am to 11 pm.
WFP also noted that Israel's latest commitment follows earlier assurances to allow more trucks into Gaza with quicker clearances and permit the use of alternative roads and routes, as well assurances of no armed forces or shootings near convoys and the ability of humanitarian organizations to import and use the communications equipment to coordinate deliveries.
But the agency also stressed that 'an agreed ceasefire is the only way for humanitarian assistance to reach the entire civilian population in Gaza with critical food supplies in a consistent, predictable, orderly and safe manner.'
Around 62,000 tons of food aid is required each month, the agency continued, warning that a third of Gaza's population is going days without food and that 470,000 people are facing 'famine-like conditions,' including 90,000 women and children in urgent need of nutritional treatment.
Over the past 24 hours, six Palestinians, including two children, died from hunger and malnutrition, Gaza's Health Ministry said on Sunday. This brings the total number of starvation and malnutrition-related deaths in the strip to 133, including 87 children.
Gaza's Government Media Office described the entry of a few dozen aid trucks as 'a limited step that does not suffice to break the famine,' stressing that the strip needs 600 trucks a day — including baby formula, humanitarian supplies and fuel — to meet the minimum needs of the population.'
The office also noted that children in Gaza require 250,000 cans of formula per month to prevent infant malnutrition and starvation.
Meanwhile, Jordan and the UAE airdropped 25 tons of aid on Sunday, following a prior airdrop conducted by the Israeli military comprising seven aid pallets of flour, sugar and canned food.
Hamas described Israel's airdrops of aid as a 'superficial and deceptive move aimed at whitewashing its image before the world.'
As the number of people killed by causes tied to malnutrition spiked over recent days, governments in Europe and the West increased calls for Israel to stop starving people in Gaza.