UAE Reaches Agreement With Israel Sends Urgent Aid To Gaza

Children's condition in the evacuation of the Gaza Strip lacks food / WHO DOK

JAKARTA - The United Arab Emirates (UAE) announced that it had reached an agreement with Israel to distribute urgent humanitarian aid to 15,000 civilians in the Gaza Strip.

UAE Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan spoke by telephone with Israel's Foreign Minister, Gideon Sa'ar, to coordinate deliveries of emergency food aid and other important supplies, according to the official UAE news agency, WAM, Anadolu reported on Wednesday,

"This assistance will meet the food needs of around 15,000 civilians in the Gaza Strip in the early stages," the WAM statement said as quoted by ANTARA from Anadolu, Wednesday, May 21.

The aid package will include operational support for bread and children's needs, with a commitment to continue to deliver similar aid in a sustainable manner.

The UAE minister stressed the importance of ensuring the delivery of humanitarian, medical, and logistical aids immediately, sustainably, safely, and without obstacles to our brothers and sisters in Gaza.

The two ministers also discussed efforts to restore the ceasefire and release the hostages.

There has been no official statement from the Israeli side regarding the deal.

Although Israel has announced a limited plan to allow aid to enter Gaza, under pressure from the United States and European countries, not a single shipment has entered since March 2, according to the Gaza Government's Media Office.

Officials in the region said Gaza needed at least 44,000 aid trucks during this period, including 500 aid trucks and 50 fuel trucks per day to meet basic humanitarian needs.

Gaza is still in a state of starvation with a blockade that has contributed to hundreds of deaths from hunger and shortages of medicine as aid trucks are still stuck at the border.

The Israeli army has continued to carry out brutal attacks on Gaza since October 2023, which has killed nearly 53,600 Palestinians, mostly women and children.

The International Criminal Court (ICC) issued an arrest warrant last November for Israeli Chief Authority Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Chief Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.

Israel is also facing genocide cases at the International Court over its war in the enclave.