The US military has carried out its first airdrop of aid into Gaza, where a quarter of the population is facing starvation.
The joint effort with the Royal Jordanian Air Force, using C-130 Hercules transport planes, saw the US dropping 66 bundles containing more than 38,000 meals along Gaza’s Mediterranean coastline.
A US military official said planning was also under way for “potential follow-on airborne aid delivery missions”.
Since the war between Israel and Hamas began, Israel has barred entry of food, water, medicine and other supplies to Gaza, except for a small trickle of aid entering from the south.
Before then, Gaza relied on a steady stream of 500 supply trucks daily, according to the UN Palestinian refugee agency UNRWA.
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People watch as US military carries out its first aid drop over Gaza. Pic: Reuters
That number averaged 150 daily in January and 97 per day in February.
Reports of people eating animal feed to survive and children dying from malnutrition and dehydration have added to the urgency nearly five months into the war.
The US has pleaded on a number of occasions for more aid to be allowed in by road but critics say resorting to expensive and inefficient airdrops shows Washington’s waning influence over its ally.
Egypt, France, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates are among the other countries that have been airdropping aid into Gaza since the conflict began.
In the last two weeks, the UK has worked with Jordan to drop aid, including medicine, fuel and food to Tal al Hawa Hospital in northern Gaza.
As well as cost and inefficiency, the risks of airdrops include danger to those on the ground and the possibility that aid ends up in the hands of militants.
White House national security spokesman John Kirby said planes can move aid more quickly than trucks, but in terms of volume, airdrops are only “a supplement to – not a replacement for – moving things in by ground”.
“There are few military operations that are more complicated than humanitarian assistance airdrops,” he added.
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US airdrops admit fundamental failure
The war between Israel and Hamas began on 7 October last year when the militant group killed 1,200 people and seized around 250 hostages.
Since then, the Hamas-run Gaza health ministry says the Palestinian death toll has hit 30,320. It does not differentiate between civilians and combatants in the figures but it says women and children are around two-thirds of those killed.
The Gaza health ministry said on Saturday that a further 11 Palestinians were killed and 50 wounded when an Israeli airstrike hit a tent next to a hospital in Rafah.
A hospital medic was among the dead.
A witness told Reuters: “The strike hit one tent, where people took shelter, directly, shrapnel came inside the hospital where me and friends were sitting, we survived by a miracle.”
The Israeli military said the “precision strike” was conducted against “Islamic Jihad terrorists” and “no damage was caused to the hospital”.
“The IDF will continue to operate in accordance with international law and make every effort to prevent any harm to noncombatants,” the IDF said.
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One of the US military planes takes off with humanitarian aid bound for Gaza. Pic: US Air Force
The Hamas-run Gaza health ministry said on Thursday that Israeli forces killed at least 118 people trying to reach a relief convoy near Gaza City.
Israel initially said it fired warning shots but the victims were trampled as crowds rushed the aid trucks.
The European Union’s diplomatic service said on Saturday many of those killed were hit by Israeli army fire and called for an international investigation.
The Israeli military responded on Saturday evening by saying it would carry out an exhaustive and truthful investigation into the deaths
Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari said: “It was a humanitarian operation we were running and the claim that we deliberately attacked the convoy and deliberately harmed people is completely baseless.”
US President Joe Biden spoke about the deaths on Friday, as he announced the airdrop would be going ahead, saying: “The loss of life is heart-breaking… people are so desperate”.
Read more:Analysis – Airdrops illustrate just how much of a disaster Gaza isExclusive: The company making millions from Gaza miseryHamas tells Sky News Biden’s ceasefire hopes are ‘wishful thinking’
Meanwhile, efforts continue to reach a ceasefire before Ramadan begins on 10 March, with mediators expected to reconvene in Cairo as early as tomorrow (Sunday) and with US vice president Kamala Harris meeting Israeli war cabinet member Benny Gantz at the White House on Monday and also visiting the UK, Sky’s Mark Stone reported.
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The ceasefire would be the first since November and hopes have risen following a previous round of talks mediated by Qatar and Egypt and positive indications from Mr Biden.
Israel and Hamas have agreed on the duration of a truce and hostage and prisoner releases, Egyptian security sources told Reuters, but a senior US official said it depended on the militant group agreeing to release hostages.
Also, the Yemeni government has confirmed the cargo ship Rubymar – which is UK-registered but Belize flagged – has sunk, less than two weeks since it was hit by a Houthi missile.
The vessel is reportedly carrying 22,000 metric tons of toxic fertiliser and has been leaking heavy fuel triggering an 18-mile (30km) oil slick in the Red Sea, prompting fears of ecological disaster.
A senior Houthi leader said on Saturday Rishi Sunak and the British government were responsible for the sinking of the Rubymar.
The Houthis, a militant group which controls parts of Yemen, have been attacking shipping in the Red Sea region to show support for Palestinians.
