Global Courant
A second humanitarian convoy has crossed from Egypt into the Gaza Strip as Israel continues its non-stop bombardment of the besieged enclave, killing 55 people overnight.
A total of 17 trucks entered Gaza on Sunday, a day after the first convoy of 20 trucks carried medical aid, food and water to the area. The strip has been under heavy bombardment by Israel since October 7, in the aftermath of the deadly Hamas attack that killed more than 1,400 Israelis.
Journalist Hani Abu Isheba told Al Jazeera from Khan Younis in Gaza that the trucks would mainly contain much-needed medical aid.
“Doctors tell us that the aid is intended for hospitals in the Gaza Strip, which are in urgent need of medical supplies. No fuel has been reported for these trucks,” he said, adding that hospitals are very concerned about the lack of fuel.
Speaking to Al Jazeera from Gaza, Thomas White of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) said the images of aid trucks on television, which resemble fuel trucks, contain fuel that UNRWA transports internally between depots.
“There is no fuel coming into Gaza. Fuel is really critical now, we need it to keep the relief operations going,” he said.
Aid agencies also warn that the supply of supplies must remain consistent as it is currently “just a drop in the ocean” and cannot meet the immense needs of Gaza’s 2.3 million residents.
The humanitarian situation in the densely populated enclave is worrying. Not only is there a shortage of medical supplies, but food and drinking water are also in short supply as Israel has cut off electricity, fuel and water supplies in the wake of the deadliest attacks in decades.
According to the UN, sanitary facilities, water wells, reservoirs and pumping stations have suffered damage as a result of the ongoing airstrikes.
The international agency estimates that about 100 trucks per day are needed to meet Gaza’s needs.
Cindy McCain, executive director of the World Food Programme, told Al Jazeera: “We need to get more trucks in.” She added that it is also important to ensure that aid reaches the right beneficiaries in a safe and sustainable manner.
The bombings continue
Meanwhile, aid deliveries have arrived as the Israeli army continued to bomb Gaza and Rafah overnight.
Israeli nighttime airstrikes have killed at least 55 people and destroyed 30 homes in Gaza, according to local authorities.
After Rafah was bombed by the Israeli army on Saturday, journalist Isheba told Al Jazeera that the scene at the border crossing was one of “humanitarian relief under mass bombardment”.
The UN has increased pressure on both Israel and Hamas and has begun calling for “a humanitarian ceasefire” to determine where aid can be safely delivered.
“What that means is very simple: we need to have clarity on places that will not be bombed or attacked by anyone – by either side,” Martin Griffiths, UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Response, told Al Jazeera .
“Normally, civilian infrastructure, hospitals, schools and so on are in fact exempt from any war attack, under the rules of war under international humanitarian law,” Griffiths said, without directly referring to reported Israeli attacks on hospitals and schools that displaced accommodate residents. Gaza.
The UN chief added that he wanted the negotiations to result in a formalized “inspection regime” of aid delivered to Gaza – as has happened in other conflicts – as well as a mechanism to provide an “up-to-date” picture to get the needs. of Gaza residents to better raise money and provide aid.
