Record number of humanitarian aid trucks entering Gaza
The highest number of humanitarian aid trucks since October 7 entered Gaza on Tuesday, Israeli officials said on Wednesday.
Boxes of humanitarian aid are distributed to residents of Deir al-Balah on April 8, 2024 ahead of the Eid al-Fitr holiday. Photo by Majdi Fathi/TPS
The Coordination of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT) said on X, formerly known as Twitter, that 468 trucks passed into the Strip on Tuesday.
“Israel is surging aid into Gaza, with over 1200 trucks entering in 3 days (avg 400/day),” COGAT tweeted. “Right now, 500 trucks worth lying on the Gaza side of [Kerem Shalom] waiting to be picked up by UN agencies.”
The tweet added, “@UN, Do your job, focus on distribution, and stop blaming Israel for your colossal failures.”
COGAT is a unit within the Israeli Defence Ministry that coordinates civilian issues in Judea, Samaria and Gaza between the government, military, international organizations and the Palestinian Authority.
Israeli officials denied claims that security inspections were holding up deliveries of food, water, medicine and other supplies.
David Mencer, a spokesperson for Israel’s National Public Diplomacy Directorate said on Tuesday, “Yesterday alone, enough food went into Gaza to feed every single person there. The U.N. fails to distribute it and Hamas steals it.”
Hamas recently slashed food prices. Gaza residents told The Press Service of Israel that the problem isn’t a lack of food but a shortage of money for families to purchase it.
The passage of aid deliveries is controversial in Israel. Food, water and fuel deliveries are frequently stolen by Hamas once they arrive inside the Strip. Israeli authorities have sidelined UNRWA, the embattled UN Relief and Works Agency for distributing food, water, medicine and other supplies. The agency has been under fire amid revelations that many of its staff are members of Hamas, including several who participated in the October 7 attacks.
“Don’t feed Hamas” is a common chant at Israeli demonstrations against humanitarian aid deliveries, and the families of hostages have called on the government to leverage the aid for information, access and freedom of their captive loved ones.
At least 1,200 people were killed and 240 Israelis and foreigners were taken hostage in Hamas’s attacks on Israeli communities near the Gaza border on October 7. Of the remaining 134 hostages, Israel recently declared 31 of them dead.
