Washington is committed to ensuring that the people of Gaza have continued access to humanitarian aid, US President Joe Biden said.
“The United States will ensure that civilians in Gaza continue to have access to food, water, medical care and other assistance,” Biden said in a White House statement.
It further states that the US will continue to work with all parties to keep the Rafah border crossing operational to enable “the continued delivery of aid that is imperative for the well-being of the people of Gaza, and to continue to work to protect civilians, consistent with its obligations under international humanitarian law.”
Trucks loaded with humanitarian aid entered the besieged Gaza Strip on Saturday via the Rafah crossing, Egyptian state television reported.
Trucks with medicine were prepared earlier, and border personnel were stationed on the Egyptian side of the crossing, a security source and an aid worker said.
The information about the entry of the truck into the Palestinian territory was confirmed by members of the Palestinian border service.
The US Embassy in Israel said earlier that the Rafah crossing could be opened during the day to allow foreigners to leave the besieged Palestinian enclave.
The embassy states in a statement that it “received information” about the opening of the crossing at 10:00 a.m. local time, but that it does not know how long it will remain open for foreign nationals.
Humanitarian aid only for the south of the enclave
The Israeli army announced today that humanitarian aid entering the Gaza Strip will only go to the southern part of the enclave and called on Palestinian civilians to gather in the area to avoid fighting with Hamas.
Chief military spokesman Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari said at a televised news conference that the aid shipments would not include fuel.
He said the updated number of hostages held by Hamas since the October 7 attack was 210, and the military said the confirmed number of Israeli soldiers killed since that date was at least 307.
Hagari said about a fifth of Palestinian rockets fired since Friday had failed to launch and landed inside Gaza, causing deaths.
The newspaper “Haaretz” writes today, citing an unnamed Israeli security official, that so far about 700,000 residents of the Gaza Strip have evacuated to the south.
The source specified that about 350,000 people are still in the north of the Gaza Strip and that there is no humanitarian crisis in the exclave, adding that there is water for a period of two weeks, the RIA agency reported the writing of the Israeli newspaper.
Gaza is experiencing a severe humanitarian crisis, with no electricity, while water, food, fuel and medical supplies are running out.
