There are Plans to Open a New Corridor For Sending Aid to Gaza, the Head of the European Union Visits Cyprus

A humanitarian aid truck from Egypt entered Gaza via Rafah. (Twitter/@PalestinineRCS)

JAKARTA - Humanitarian aid for the Gaza Strip, Palestine is expected to be sent from Cyprus this week, a new delivery corridor amidst the increasingly worrying humanitarian situation in the Palestinian enclave, with the Head of the European Union (EU) set to visit the Mediterranean country.

A source familiar with the matter said aid would be sent from Cyprus in the coming days. It is not yet clear which countries are supplying the aid, where it will be provided, or how it will be distributed.

However, the source said aid was being coordinated with the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

"They want aid to be sent before the start of Ramadan on Sunday," a source who did not want to be named told Reuters, as quoted on March 7.

Sending aid to Gaza has become an urgent matter, as the humanitarian crisis there gets worse. Israel launched the offensive following a deadly Hamas attack on Israel on October 7, while Gaza's Health Ministry on Wednesday said the death toll of Palestinian civilians had reached 30,717.

Meanwhile, EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen is scheduled to be in Cyprus on Thursday evening and on Friday will visit the port of Larnaca, which has been identified as a launch point for humanitarian aid deliveries to Gaza.

"Our efforts are focused on ensuring that we can provide assistance to the Palestinian people," said spokesperson von der Leyen.

"We all hope that the opening of this (corridor) will happen soon," he added.

In Nicosia, a Cypriot government spokesman said: "On Friday she (von der Leyen) will visit, together with the (Cyprus) president, the infrastructure related to several stages of the plan.

It is known that Cyprus, which is located about 370 km (230 miles) northwest of Gaza, is the European Union member state closest to the region. They have campaigned for months to create a sustainable, one-way sea route to bring aid directly to the enclave.