Cairo: A total of 1,114 trucks of humanitarian aid have so far been sent to the Gaza Strip via the Rafah crossing since the border was reopened Sunday, Egypt’s Al-Qahera News TV channel reported on Wednesday.
A convoy of 174 trucks of humanitarian aid, including 14 trucks carrying fuel, was sent on Wednesday, the fourth day of a truce between Israel and Hamas, into the Gaza Strip via the Rafah crossing, the report added.
The Rafah crossing is a vital entry point for international aid destined for Gaza. Israel has controlled the Palestinian side of the crossing since May 2024 and reopened it under the terms of the ceasefire.
Meanwhile, an Egyptian security source and another one with the Egyptian Red Crescent told Xinhua news agency that Egypt has sent dozens of heavy machines to rehabilitate the roads around the crossing, as well as those leading to Palestinian cities nearby, to facilitate the delivery of aid trucks and the reception of wounded Palestinians from Gaza.
On Sunday, a long line of trucks, laden with humanitarian aid, snaked its way towards the heavily-guarded Rafah crossing, hours after the ceasefire agreement came into effect.
The trucks, carrying food, clothes, medical equipment, tents, mobile toilets, and other relief materials, had been parked in several cities in Egypt’s North Sinai Governorate, mainly Arish, Sheikh Zuweid, and Rafah, some of which had been waiting for months to reach Palestinians in need.
“I have brought in a lot of aid to the Gaza Strip since the beginning of the war in October 2023, until the entry of aid to the Strip became almost non-existent due to the harsh Israeli policies,” said 65-year-old truck driver Ahmed Ibrahim Ahmed.
“Today, I feel happy not only because I will be able to bring in this aid to the residents of the Gaza Strip, but also because the people of Gaza will be able to sleep without fear for the first time in more than a year after the ceasefire came into effect this morning,” he told Xinhua.
Ibrahim said his truck was carrying clothes and blankets, noting that “the residents of the Strip need them greatly due to the bitter winter cold they suffer from while living in tents.”
The ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas, with its first stage spanning 42 days, was reached on Wednesday through the mediation of Egypt, Qatar, and the United States. It began taking effect on Sunday.
(IANS)
