Cairo, May 21 (EFE).- The United Arab Emirates (UAE) announced that Israel will allow “urgent” humanitarian aid from the Arab country into the Gaza Strip to “meet the food needs of some 15,000 civilians in an initial phase.”
Emirati Foreign Minister Abdullah bin Zayed al Nahyan held a telephone conversation with his Israeli counterpart Gideon Saar to reach an agreement between the two countries to allow the delivery of food and supplies to the Palestinian territory, according to the Emirati news agency WAM.
In addition to food, “the initiative also includes the provision of essential supplies to the work of bakeries in the Strip, and to critical items for children’s health,” it added.
During the call, the Emirati minister stressed the “importance of ensuring urgent, sustained, safe and unhindered humanitarian and medical assistance to the Palestinian brothers in the Strip.”
According to the World Food Program, 470,000 people in Gaza are facing “catastrophic famine,” one in five Gazans, and the entire population of the Palestinian territory (some 2 million people) is “severely food insecure.”
The aid announced by the United States would cover the needs of 3% of these 470,000 Palestinians in this initial phase.
After almost three months of a blockade on all humanitarian aid, Israel claimed to have allowed up to 93 truckloads of supplies into Gaza.
However, the United Nations claims nothing has yet reached Gaza’s warehouses and distribution points. EFE
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