More than 630 trucks of humanitarian aid enter Gaza, UN says

More than 630 trucks of humanitarian aid enter Gaza, UN says

United Nations officials announced on January 20th that more than 630 aid trucks have entered the Gaza strip, marking the start of the Gaza ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas, Asharq Al-Awsat reported.

The ceasefire agreement commenced on January 19th with its initial six-week phase. The deal outlines the delivery of 600 aid trucks containing humanitarian relief to go into Gaza daily. The deal also includes the release of 33 Israeli hostages held in Gaza by Hamas in exchange for the release of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners.

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Tom Fletcher, the UN under-secretary-general for humanitarian affairs, said in a post on X that more than 630 trucks went into Gaza on January 19th. Fletcher added at least 300 of the trucks carried humanitarian assistance to north. “There is no time to lose,” Fletcher said. “After 15 months of relentless war, the humanitarian needs are staggering.”

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The NGO ActionAid reported that 77% of Palestinians lacked essential relief items, according to The New Arab on January 2nd. Northern Gaza is facing especially dire conditions, with scarcities in food, medicine, fuel, and shelter, according to the World Health Organisation (WHO).

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Palestine Country Director for the UN World Food Programme (WFP), Antoine Renard said: “barely any food has gone into besieged North Gaza for more than two months. Winter cold and rain are further reducing people’s ability to survive,” CNN reported on January 20th.

Aside from cutting off parts of the north, an Israeli ban against WFP’s aid partner, UNRWA, is due to be effective in a fortnight. WFP and UNRWA each support 1.1 million people in Gaza, which means that UNRWA’s role is critical for the distribution of aid.

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The UNRWA Communications Director Juliette Touma told CNN on January 17th: “Our plan is to stay and deliver until we cannot.” Touma added that the organisation is only able to hand over operations to a Palestinian institution and that this can only take place through “a diplomatic solution that will also address the plight of Palestine refugees.”

Asharq Al-Awsat, CNN, The New Arab

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