Crisis in the Middle East: First maritime shipment of aid leaves for Gaza

“It is a lifeline for citizens,” said Nikos Christodoulides, the President of Cyprus. said on social media.

With Gaza under a near-total blockade and more than five months of Israeli bombardment, much of the enclave is at risk of famine. the United Nations has warned. Hunger is especially acute in the north, where UN agencies also do so largely suspended their relief operations, citing Israeli restrictions on convoys, security concerns and poor road conditions.

Aid organizations say that too little aid is entering Gaza by land. That’s fueling multinational efforts to deliver food and necessities by sea and air. The United States, Britain, the European Union and other governments said last week they would establish a maritime corridor to bring aid from Cyprus to Gaza, and the US military has announced plans to build a floating pier to facilitate deliveries because Gaza has no functioning port.

But U.S. officials have said it could take 30 to 60 days to set up the floating pier, and Gaza aid groups and officials have said sealifts and air drops are both cumbersome and don’t come close to supplying trucks. Only left 100 emergency trucks In February, they entered Gaza on average every day via the two open land routes, a fraction of what entered before the war began in October.

Israel has insisted on inspecting shipments to Gaza, arguing they could be diverted by Hamas, but says it does not limit how much aid comes in. The Israeli government has said it supports the maritime corridor as long as shipments in Cyprus are inspected “in accordance with Israeli standards.”

Ms von der Leyen told reporters at the Cypriot port of Larnaca last week that the first sea freight was “a pilot project” and that others would soon follow.

It remained unclear how World Central Kitchen’s shipment would be unloaded and distributed once the ship reached the Gaza coast, a journey of about 250 miles from Cyprus. The group’s founder, José Andrés, the famous Spanish-American chef, said this weekend that they had started building a scaffolding in Gaza to receive the aid, but the group would not specify where the scaffolding was located .

Construction of the jetty was “in full swing,” Mr Andrés said said Tuesday on social media. “We may fail, but the greatest failure will be not trying!”

The usual sailing time between Cyprus and Gaza is 15 to 17 hours, officials and aid groups say, but it could take longer due to the ship’s cargo and depending on weather conditions.

The ship that left Tuesday was carrying rice, flour, lentils, dry beans, canned beans, canned tuna, canned beef and canned chicken, the group said. The United Arab Emirates provided financing and logistical support for the operation, Mr Andrés said.

Since October, organizers and Palestinian chefs working with World Central Kitchen have served more than 34 million meals in Gaza, the group said. The organization has established 65 communal kitchens in the area administered by Palestinians and has plans for at least 35 more refugees, Mr Andrés said. About 350,000 meals are served every day, but Mr Andrés said he would like to distribute more than a million meals a day.

European officials welcomed the news of the ship’s departure.

“We have worked hand in hand not only with Cyprus, but also with the United Arab Emirates, the United States and the United Kingdom,” Ms von der Leyen told European lawmakers on Tuesday. “When fully operational, this maritime corridor could ensure a sustained, regulated and robust flow of aid to Gaza.”

Niki Kitsantonis reporting contributed.