According to two US officials who spoke on condition of anonymity, the airdrops were carried out using three C-130 transport aircraft. A total of 66 packages containing tens of thousands of meals were dropped into the war zone. The type of aircraft, also known as “Hercules”, is also used by the Federal Army, among others. An official White House statement said the airdrops were supported by Israel and would continue in the future.
In recent days and weeks, other countries, including France, Britain, Egypt and Jordan, have already sent humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip. Discarded food or medicine brings some relief to needs, especially in areas that are difficult or impossible to reach by land with aid deliveries, such as the northern Gaza Strip.
APA/AFP aid packages can only provide a fraction of the help needed
Israel announces pause in fighting for humanitarian purposes
However, UN organizations point out that the quantities that can be delivered through airdrops are quite small. Given the large number of people in need in the Gaza Strip, the effect dissipates quickly, they say. Furthermore, all order collapsed in the affected areas of Gaza as a result of the war. Young people often fight over the packages left to get something for their families.
Gaza: US helps from the air
The US began delivering air aid to civilians in Gaza.
Israel announced on Saturday night that it would suspend military activities for humanitarian purposes. According to the Israeli military, the objective is to facilitate the delivery of aid. The temporary cessation of military activities in individual areas of the Gaza Strip will be enforced from Saturday to Thursday from 10am to 2pm in different areas of the cities of Rafah and Deir al-Balah, a military spokesman said on X (Twitter ). The limited cessation of military activities should also serve to ensure that civilians can safely reach relief supply distribution stations.
UN: More than 500 thousand people at risk of hunger
US President Joe Biden announced the US air aid deliveries in a meeting with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni. “We must do more and the United States will do more,” Biden said. In addition to an airlift, according to Biden, the US also wants to examine the possibility of a maritime corridor to bring large amounts of aid to the Gaza Strip. The aid delivered to the Gaza Strip so far is “far from enough”, said the US President.
Portal/Jordanian Armed Forces The Jordanian army has long been sending aid supplies through Gaza
“Innocent lives are at stake, children's lives are at stake,” Biden said. According to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, at least 576,000 people in the Gaza Strip – a quarter of the population – are at risk of starvation.
Requests clarification on fatal incident
The US president made his comments a day after dozens of people were killed in an incident involving a humanitarian aid convoy in Gaza City. On Thursday, thousands of people gathered around a convoy of 38 humanitarian aid trucks. The Israeli military said there were dozens of deaths and injuries, some of whom were run over by trucks. An army officer acknowledged a “limited” number of shots fired by Israeli soldiers who felt “threatened”.
debate
What might the future of the Gaza Strip be like?
The radical Islamic group Hamas spoke of a “massacre” in which at least 115 people were killed and more than 750 were injured. There is no independent confirmation. A United Nations team reported on Friday that it saw “numerous” people with “gunshot wounds” during a visit to Al-Shifa hospital in Gaza, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres' spokesman Stephane Dujarric said. .
Israeli Army announces investigation
On Saturday, the EU's diplomatic service also said that many of the Palestinians killed or injured in the chaos were shot by the Israeli army. The fatal incident caused international outrage and criticism. There have been many calls for a detailed investigation, including from France, Britain and the African Union. The EU's diplomatic service also requested one on Saturday.
On Saturday night, the Israeli army announced a full investigation into the incident. The military has obtained all the evidence to clarify the matter, Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari said at a press conference. The army will present the results. “The allegation that we deliberately attacked the convoy and intentionally caused harm to people is unfounded,” he added.
US negotiators: Framework for ceasefire is in place
At the same time, calls for a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip have become louder again. With the mediation of the USA, Egypt and Qatar, there has been a fight for this for days. The aim is to reach an agreement before the fasting month of Ramadan begins, around March 10th and 11th. They are working “hard” on a ceasefire. But we're not there yet, the US President said on Friday.
On Saturday, Portal news agency quoted a senior US official as saying the framework for a six-week ceasefire in the Gaza Strip was in place. Israel has already agreed, but it depends on whether radical Islamist Hamas agrees to release the hostages. “The agreement basically already exists. But I don’t want to raise expectations one way or another,” the unnamed source said.
It had already been said that Israel would not participate in a new round of negotiations mediated by Egypt, Qatar and the US until Hamas presented a list of hostages still alive, the Axios news portal reported. Hamas has also not yet responded to the number of Palestinian prisoners in Israeli prisons proposed by mediators that Israel would release in exchange for the release of a certain number of hostages.