Relief as UN receives Israel’s permission for extra 100 aid trucks in Gaza

There is seeming relief as the United Nations has received permission from Israel to send 100 more trucks carrying humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip, a spokesman said on Tuesday.

Jens Laerke, spokesman for the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs in Geneva, expressed hope that the emergency deliveries would be examined and cleared for entry by Wednesday at the latest.

After a nearly three-month blockade, Israel on Monday cleared nine trucks full of aid to enter Gaza, although only five have so far made it inside, Laerke said.

Distribution is expected to begin on Tuesday, with baby food among the supplies.

“There are babys in life-saving need of these supplements; if they do not get those they are in mortal danger,” Laerke said.

During a brief ceasefire earlier this year, up to 600 trucks a day crossed into Gaza.

The current deliveries, UN emergency relief coordinator Tom Fletcher noted on Monday, are a “welcome development” but also “a drop in the ocean” of need.

Aid agencies and the UN have been warning for weeks of imminent famine in Gaza, where the population of roughly two million is almost entirely reliant on outside food and supplies.

Appeals to Israel have grown increasingly urgent.

Israel accuses Hamas of diverting aid to fund its operations and fighters.  (dpa/NAN)