US conducts humanitarian airdrops into Gaza

By Diyar Guldogan

WASHINGTON (AA) - US Central Command (CENTCOM) conducted another round of airdrop of humanitarian assistance into northern Gaza Friday to provide relief to civilians affected by the ongoing war.

"The joint operation included two C-17 U.S. Air Force aircraft, and U.S. Army Soldiers specialized in aerial delivery of U.S humanitarian assistance supplies," CENTCOM said on X.

The planes dropped over 46,000 US meal equivalents into northern Gaza, it added.

"During today's mission, approximately 26 bundles landed in the sea," it said. "U.S. Central Command does not assess civilian harm or damage to infrastructure at this time but continues to monitor the situation".

Pentagon previously said that safety is a "top priority" when planning the airdrops.

In early March, the Department of Defense announced that it will undertake an emergency mission to establish a temporary pier on the coast of Gaza to deliver up to 2 million humanitarian aid meals per day.

Israel has waged a deadly military offensive on the Gaza Strip since Oct. 7, 2023 cross-border attack by Hamas which killed nearly 1,200 people.

Nearly 32,500 Palestinians have since been killed and 74,900 others injured amid mass destruction and shortages of necessities.

The Israeli war has pushed 85% of Gaza’s population into internal displacement amid acute shortages of food, clean water and medicine, while 60% of the enclave's infrastructure has been damaged or destroyed, according to the UN.