Iran’s Humanitarian Aid Airlift for Gaza Enters Egypt
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Iran said on Wednesday a consignment of humanitarian assistance for the people of Gaza has been dispatched to Egypt, which controls Rafah border crossing, the only window to the outside world for the blockaded Gaza Strip.
Iranian Foreign Ministry said in a statement that a cargo plane, carrying 100 tons of humanitarian aid, has landed in Cairo on Wednesday.
It said the aid is sent to Gaza as part of Iran’s continued support for the Palestinian nation and backing for the anti-Israeli resistance.
The shipment consists of medicine, medical equipment, tents, blankets and foodstuff, the ministry noted, adding that the goods will be delivered to the Gaza Strip after coordination between the Egyptian and Palestinian sides.
On August 27, a United Nations World Food Program (WFP) convoy crossed from Egypt into the Gaza Strip for the first time since 2007.
Eighteen trucks made the seven-hour trip from Alexandria to the Rafah crossing, which has been closed since the start of the Gaza blockade in 2007, the WFP said in a statement.
Egypt's frequent closure of the Rafah border crossing, the Palestinian enclave's only lifeline to the outside world, has exacerbated an already dire humanitarian situation in the coastal enclave, particularly after Israel started opened strike on Gaza in July.
A total of 2,142 people, most of them civilians including more than 490 children, were killed in Gaza since war broke out on July 8, after Israel launched an offensive on the coastal enclave of 1.8 million population.
A total of 69 people have been killed on the Israeli side, nearly all of them soldiers.
Thousands of homes in the Gaza Strip have been destroyed or damaged by the Israeli offensive.
The Palestinian Center for Human Rights said 540,000 people had been displaced in the Gaza Strip.
