U.S. airdrops food to Gaza for first time on Saturday
United States Washington:
U.S. cargo planes airdropped more than 36,000 meals into Gaza on Tuesday in a joint operation with Jordan, the U.S. military said, as the international community struggles to contain a growing humanitarian crisis there.
The airdrops from the United States and others are intended to supplement what officials say are insufficient supplies of aid on the ground to Gaza, where the United Nations has warned that famine is “almost inevitable.”
The military command said: “U.S. Central Command and the Royal Jordanian Air Force conducted a joint humanitarian assistance airdrop to northern Gaza on March 5, 2024 at 2:30 pm (Gaza time) to provide necessary supplies to civilians affected by the ongoing conflict. rescue,” it said in a statement.
“U.S. C-130 aircraft dropped more than 36,800 American and Jordanian meals in this much-needed area of northern Gaza, allowing civilians to receive critical assistance,” Central Command said, adding, “We will continue to plan for follow-up operations. Aid delivery mission. “
The United States airdropped food to Gaza for the first time on Saturday, and White House officials said the United States was “prepared to take additional steps to increase aid, including through airdrops” and possible maritime corridors.
growing crisis
Gaza has faced relentless Israeli bombardment since Hamas launched a cross-border attack on Oct. 7, killing about 1,160 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official Israeli data.
Israel’s retaliatory offensive in the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip has killed more than 30,600 people, mostly women and children, according to the region’s health ministry.
The amount of aid trucked into Gaza has dropped significantly during the nearly five-month war, with Gazans facing severe shortages of food, water and medicine.
WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on Monday that the agency’s weekend visit to northern Gaza found “food shortages that led to the deaths of 10 children,” while Gaza’s health ministry said at least 16 children in the area had died of malnutrition. north.
Pentagon deputy press secretary Sabrina Singer said Monday that between 30 and 120 trucks have been delivering aid to Gaza every day over the past week.
“It’s clearly not enough to feed the population there,” Singh told reporters, while reiterating that the airdrops were intended to supplement, not replace, aid provided on the ground.
Chaos surrounded a convoy of rescue trucks in Gaza City on Thursday, leaving more than 100 people dead.
Gaza health officials said Israeli forces fired into crowds, causing a “massacre”, while the Israeli army said most of the victims were trampled or hit by trucks as they scrambled for food aid.
A United Nations team visiting a hospital in Gaza City reported a “high number” of gunshot wounds among Palestinians following the incident.
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