Israel has restricted humanitarian deliveries into the Gaza Strip, tightening the number of trucks and citing ongoing pressure on Hamas to return Israeli hostage bodies, authorities said Monday.
Aid to Gaza Strip Limited
According to media reports, the first aid trucks were to enter Gaza on October 15, but the transport volume will be half what was expected. Earlier Israel notified the United Nations that from Wednesday only 300 trucks would be allowed into the Strip. The flow of aid is being curtailed to pressure Hamas to return the bodies of Israeli hostages.
The UN World Food Programme said on Tuesday that it had brought 137 trucks since the weekend but had yet to record any increase in aid; it added that none of its deliveries reached Gaza on Monday because of the hostage exchange and prisoner swap.
Immediate Action Required
Humanitarian aid had previously been delivered through the Kissufim border crossing, according to UN information, but crossings in northern Gaza remain closed. About 50 international aid organisations report still lacking permits to enter the Strip with supplies.
Oxfam policy adviser Bushra Khalidi told Reuters that the needs of people who have faced months of hunger will not be met by a few trucks. “We are in limbo,” she said. “Changing has not occurred; we keep seeing only a few trucks and large crowds approaching them in ways that are entirely inconsistent with humanitarian standards.”
The International Committee of the Red Cross spokesman Christian Cardon told reporters in Geneva that only a few large trucks are arriving and urged that all crossings be opened. “The longer Rafah remains closed, the greater the prolonging of suffering for people in Gaza, especially the displaced in the south,” he said.
Hamas to Deliver Hostage Bodies
On the night of October 14 around 21:00, Hamas was due to hand over the bodies of four killed Israelis. It cited delays due to the difficulty of locating bodies under rubble in the bombed Gaza. Israel had already returned 45 Palestinian bodies. Under the agreement, for each Israeli body Hamas will receive 15 Palestinian bodies; to date Hamas has handed over four coffins, while families of over 20 hostages remain waiting.
On October 13 Hamas freed all Israeli hostages and Israel released 1,968 Palestinian prisoners in return.
