Aid trucks resume flow from Egypt to Gaza via Rafah crossing for 3rd consecutive day

By Rania Abu Shamala

ISTANBUL (AA) - Humanitarian aid trucks resumed their movement from Egypt toward the Gaza Strip, marking the third consecutive day of aid deliveries, Egyptian media said Tuesday.

Trucks began crossing into Gaza through the Egyptian-controlled side of the Rafah border crossing, carrying essential food, medical supplies, and other relief materials for civilians affected by the ongoing crisis, the Al-Qahera news channel reported.

Egypt is providing nearly 80% of all humanitarian aid currently moving toward Gaza, the broadcaster said.

On Monday, a limited number of aid trucks entered the Gaza Strip via the Rafah border crossing with Egypt, as a hunger crisis induced by a stifling Israeli blockade continues to widen in the Palestinian enclave.

Video footage captured by an Anadolu cameraman showed a few trucks loaded with humanitarian aid entering the enclave.

Palestinian authorities say Gaza needs 600 aid trucks daily to meet the needs of the territory’s 2.4 million population.

Israel has imposed a blockade on Gaza for 18 years and, since March 2, has shut down all crossings, blocking the entry of aid convoys and ignoring international calls to reopen them. Aid distribution by the controversial Gaza Humanitarian Foundation began in late May.

According to Gaza’s Health Ministry, at least 147 people have died of starvation since October 2023, including 88 children.

Rejecting international calls for a ceasefire, the Israeli army has pursued a brutal offensive on Gaza since Oct. 7, 2023, killing nearly 60,000 Palestinians, most of them women and children.

Last November, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.

Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on the enclave.