**Aid Trucks Reach Gaza, But No Supplies Distributed**
The United Nations has announced that aid trucks have started to cross the border into Gaza, but no supplies have been distributed yet. According to Israeli officials, 93 trucks carrying essential items like flour, baby food, medical equipment, and pharmaceutical drugs entered Gaza on Tuesday.
However, the UN spokesperson Stephane dujarric said that despite the arrival of these aid trucks, the distribution process has not started due to a delay in Israel allowing the UN team access to the area. Dujarric stated that the team waited for several hours before being granted permission to enter, but unfortunately, they were unable to bring the supplies into their warehouse.
**International Pressure on Israel Continues**
The international community is continuing to put pressure on Israel over its actions in Gaza. The UK has announced that it will suspend trade talks with Israel due to its “morally unjustifiable” military expansion in Gaza. Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer described the situation as “intolerable”.
Kaja Kallas, the EU’s chief of foreign policy, also said that the bloc would review its trade agreement with Israel due to its actions in Gaza.
**UN Estimates 600 Trucks Needed Daily**
The UN has estimated that 600 trucks per day are needed to tackle Gaza’s chronic humanitarian crisis. However, the aid operation has become complex because Israel demanded that the UN offload supplies at the Palestinian side of Kerem Shalom and reload separately once they secure access for their teams from within the Gaza Strip.
Tom Fletcher, the UN humanitarian chief, told the BBC earlier this week that thousands of babies may die in Gaza if Israel doesn’t immediately allow aid to be distributed. He stated: “There will be 14,000 babies who die in the next two days if we don’t reach them.”
However, the UN later clarified that the figure of 14,000 was not referring to a short-term timeframe, but rather to the number of severe cases of acute malnutrition that are expected among children aged 6-59 months from April 2025 to March 2026.
**Sanctions Imposed on Israel**
The international pressure on Israel continues to grow. The UK has imposed sanctions on a number of prominent Israeli settlers as well as settler-related groups.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio welcomed Israel’s decision on Tuesday to allow some aid to Gaza, but the UK, France, and Canada have called on the Israeli government to stop its military operations and allow humanitarian aid into Gaza immediately.
**Aid Distribution Delayed**
The delay in distributing aid has raised concerns among international leaders. The UN has emphasized that the distribution of aid is urgent, and they need to get supplies into Gaza as quickly as possible, ideally within 48 hours.
Jens Laerke, UNOCHA’s spokesman, stated: “For the moment let me just say that I know for a certainty that there are babies in desperate need of these supplements because their mothers cannot feed themselves. And if they don’t get those, they are in mortal danger.”
Hamas’s health ministry reported last week that 57 children died of malnutrition in the past 11 weeks.
Read More @ www.bbc.com
