U.S. continues to airdrop aid into Gaza

U.S. continues to airdrop aid into Gaza
by Clyde Hughes
Washington DC (UPI) Mar 14, 2024

The U.S. Central Command and Royal Jordanian Air Force successfully conducted food drops into northern Gaza on Thursday in a continued effort to alleviate starvation in the war-torn region.

Jordan provided the food and the U.S. Air Force C-130 aircraft delivered the 13,900 meal equivalents to the area just before noon. It was the 10th time U.S. forces had participated in airdropping aid since the war began last year.

"The [Defense Department] airdrops contribute to ongoing U.S. and partner-nation government efforts to alleviate human suffering," CENTCOM said in a statement. "These airdrops are part of a sustained effort, and we continue to plan follow-on aerial deliveries."

Not all the air drops have gone as planned. On March 8, five children died, and several others were injured during a random drop in the Al Shati camp west of Gaza City. Some officials have complained that airdrops are not the most effective way to deliver food to Gaza.

Last week, Britain, the European Union, the United Arab Emirates, and the United States confirmed they would unite to establish a sea corridor to ship aid to a temporary port that U.S. forces are constructing on the Gaza coast.

Officials said they hope that the port can become another avenue to get humanitarian food and aid into Gaza while land routes remain limited.

21 dead, 150 wounded in attack on Gaza food aid site
Washington DC (UPI) Mar 14, 2024 - 21 people are dead and at least 150 wounded by an attack on people waiting for food aid in the battle-weary Gaza strip, according to the health ministry.

The death toll is expected to grow as the situation unfolds and casualties are taken to the hospital, according to Mohammad Ghrab, a doctor at the emergency unit at Al Shifa Hospital.

Witnesses reported the shelling attack by Israeli forces happened at the Kuwaiti roundabout, where trucks distribute food, attracting crowds of people in need of food and medical aid.

The incident was "a result of the Israeli occupation forces targeting a gathering of citizens waiting for humanitarian aid to satisfy their thirst at the Kuwaiti roundabout in Gaza," the Gaza Health Ministry said.

"Medical teams are unable to deal with the volume and type of injuries reaching hospitals in northern Gaza due to weak medical and human capabilities."

Eyewitnesses told Al Jazeera reporters that the area was struck by what they said sounded like tank or artillery fire.

Gaza Civil Defense Spokesman Mahmoud Basal doubled down on the health ministry's charges that Israel is behind the attack.

"The Israeli occupation forces are still practicing the policy of killing innocent citizens waiting for relief aid as a result of the famine occurring in the northern Gaza Strip," Basal said in a statement late Thursday.

Israel's military has said it plans to relocate 1.4 million displaced Palestinians from the southern city of Rafah to "humanitarian enclaves" before launching an offensive there.

This is a developing story.