The US military has begun dropping aid to Gaza amid warnings the war-torn nation is facing the threat of famine as Israel continues its brutal bombing campaign.
American cargo planes air-dropped 38,000 meals into the besieged territory on Saturday.
It comes as part of a series of drops planned by Washington, which is also continuing to send support to Israel.
The United Nations has warned Gaza is dangerously close to famine and more than 100 people were left dead earlier this week after Israeli forces opened fire on the crowd scrambling to receive food from a truck convoy.
President Joe Biden announced the imminent air drops on Friday amid mounting political pressure over the plight of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.
The US military has begun dropping aid to Gaza amid warnings the war-torn nation is facing the threat of famine
American cargo planes air-dropped 38,000 meals into the besieged territory on Saturday
It comes as part of a series of drops planned by Washington, which is also continuing to send support to Israel’s sustained bombing campaign
‘US Central Command and the Royal Jordanian Air Force conducted a combined humanitarian assistance air drop into Gaza on March 2, 2024, between 3:00 and 5:00 pm (Gaza time) to provide essential relief to civilians affected by the ongoing conflict,’ the American military command said on social media.
CENTCOM said US C-130 military cargo planes ‘dropped over 38,000 meals along the coastline of Gaza allowing for civilian access to the critical aid.’
The air drops are ‘part of a sustained effort to get more aid into Gaza, including by expanding the flow of aid through land corridors and routes,’ the command added.
A CENTCOM official said the drop was made up of US military rations that did not contain pork, the consumption of which is prohibited by Islam.
Palestinian militant group Hamas carried out an unprecedented attack on Israel on October 7 that resulted in the deaths of around 1,160 people. Hamas also took about 250 hostages, 130 of whom still remain in Gaza.
Israel responded with a relentless assault on Hamas-controlled Gaza that has taken a devastating toll on civilians trapped there, killing more than 30,000 people, according to the territory’s health ministry.
The amount of aid brought into Gaza by truck has plummeted during nearly five months of war, and Gazans are facing dire shortages of food, water and medicines.
The United Nations has accused Israeli forces of ‘systematically’ blocking access to Gaza, which Israel denies.
Smoke rises following Israeli air strikes in the northern Gaza Strip, 01 March 2024. More than 30,200 Palestinians and over 1,300 Israelis have been killed, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry and the Israel Defense Forces (IDF)
Palestinians queue for hours to receive food distributed by charitable organizations, in Deir Balah, Gaza on March 01, 2024
‘US Central Command and the Royal Jordanian Air Force conducted a combined humanitarian assistance air drop into Gaza on March 2, 2024, between 3:00 and 5:00 pm (Gaza time)
U.S. C-130s dropped over 38,000 meals along the coastline of Gaza allowing for civilian access to the critical aid
Some foreign militaries have air-dropped supplies to Gaza, sending long lines of aid pallets floating down into the war-torn territory on parachutes.
Jordan has been conducting many of the operations with the support of countries including Britain, France and the Netherlands, while Egypt sent several military planes on an air drop Thursday together with the United Arab Emirates.
Biden has pushed Israel to reduce civilian casualties and allow aid in, while at the same time he has maintained military assistance for the key US ally.
National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said Friday that the United States planned to carry out multiple air drops over a period of weeks, which will ‘be a supplement to, not a replacement for, moving things in by ground.’
He described it as a ‘tough military operation’ that required careful planning by the Pentagon for the safety of both Gazan civilians and US military personnel.
‘It is extremely difficult to do an air drop in such a crowded environment as is Gaza,’ said Kirby, adding: ‘This is a war zone. So there’s an added element of potential danger to the pilots in the aircraft.’