The United States and Jordan air-dropped aid into Gaza, one day after President Biden emphasized the US would pill out ‘every stop” to get more aid into the besieged shore region.
The collaborated operation by the US Air Force and the Royal Jordanian Air force saw US C-130 aircraft which dropping 38,000 meals along Gaza coast, CENTCOM said in a statement.
There were 66 overall packages that were dropped – 22 from each of 3 aircraft, a US official said. There was no water or medical provisions at all in the bundles.
“These drops are part of a constant effort to get more aid into Gaza, including by intensifying the flow of aid through land corridors and routes,” “conducting planning for potential follow-on airborne aid delivery missions.” CENTCOM said.
On Friday, Biden bewailed the slow pace of aid into Gaza while declaring the forthcoming airdrops. Speaking with the Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni in the Oval Office, Biden also said the US was working to broker a ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas that allow for additional aid.
President Biden said he would “insist” that Israel permit additional trucks and routes for aid into Gaza.
“We’re going to assert that Israel enable more trucks and more routes to get more and more people the help they need, no excuses,” Biden said. “Innocent lives are on the line, and children’s lives are on the line.”
Other nations like the UAE and France, have also air dropped relief into Gaza. But Saturday’s act was a first for the US.
Before the call for the Saturday’s operation, several aid agencies criticized the US plans to drop food aid as ineffective, as the UN warns that hundreds of thousands of Gazans are on the brink of famine.
Richard Gowan, the International Crisis Group’s UN director, said on one of his social media posts “Humanitarian workforces always complain that drops are good photo opportunities but a lousy way to deliver aid.”
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