An aircraft airdrops humanitarian aid over Gaza the northern Gaza Strip, as seen from southern Israel. Photo / AP
An aircraft airdrops humanitarian aid over Gaza the northern Gaza Strip, as seen from southern Israel. Photo / AP
Air-dropped US aid packages struck and killed five Palestinians in Gaza after their parachutes failed to open properly, according to reports.
Footage circulating on social media appears to show several packages plummeting to the ground from a transport aircraft.
More than 70,000 meals have been delivered to Gaza over the past week by the US military in coordination with Jordan, Egypt and France. Earlier, Lord Cameron, the Foreign Secretary, said Britain would work alongside the United States to open a maritime corridor to deliver aid directly to the enclave by sea.
Aid officials have warned for months of looming famine in Gaza amid food shortages caused by border closures.
هذا ما خلفه الإسقاط الجوي على مدينة غزة ، ش&يد وعدد من الإصابات نتيجة إسقاط فاشل على منازل المواطنين شمال مخيم الشاطئ.. pic.twitter.com/NUbkv05mtx
— إسماعيل الغول - Ismail Alghoul (@ismail_gh2) March 8, 2024
Meanwhile, Israeli officials have discussed arming some civilians in Gaza to provide security protection for aid convoys into the besieged enclave, as part of wider planning for humanitarian supplies after fighting ends, the Israel Hayom daily said.
With civil order increasingly strained in Hamas-run Gaza and municipal police refusing to provide security to convoys because of the risk of being targeted by Israeli forces, the issue of secure distribution of supplies has become a major problem.
An aircraft airdrops humanitarian aid over Gaza the northern Gaza Strip, as seen from southern Israel. Photo / AP
The civilians would not be linked to militant groups including Hamas but it remained unclear who they might be, the newspaper said. It said Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had postponed a decision on the issue.
The Prime Minister’s office declined to comment on the report, which came a week after dozens of Palestinians were killed in an incident in which crowds surrounded a convoy of aid trucks entering northern Gaza and troops opened fire.
At least three people starved to death in last 24 hours, rights group says
In the last 24 hours, at least three people have starved to death in Gaza as the humanitarian situation continues to deteriorate.
Three-year-old Ahmed Wael Ahl and another 15-year-old died from died of hunger and dehydration in Al-Shifa Medical Complex, the Euro-Med Human Rights Monitor said.
They added that in Kamal Adwan Hospital in northern Gaza, a 72-year-old man died from malnutrition and dehydration.
Euro-Med Human Rights Monitor warned of a “notable increase” in deaths among children and the elderly.
