Cairo: The Egyptian Red Crescent (ERC) recently dispatched its 53rd 'Zad El-Ezza: From Egypt to Gaza' convoy, transporting a substantial 8,500 tonnes of relief supplies. This effort comes as Israel maintains that the Gaza side of the Rafah crossing will remain closed "until further notice."
According to State Information Service Egypt, approximately 200 Egyptian trucks, loaded with 4,000 tonnes of aid, departed from the Rafah terminal early on Sunday. This operation was organized by the National Alliance for Civil and Development Work (NACDW), a coalition of 17 Egyptian charities that has orchestrated several missions to Gaza over the past two years.
The broadcaster reported that the trucks underwent Israeli inspection at the Karm Abu Salem and Al-Awja crossings before being cleared to continue their journey. More convoys are anticipated once the initial batch proceeds.
The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine (UNRWA) sources informed Al-Qahera News that over 6,000 trucks filled with humanitarian goods are queued to enter Gaza. However, only 400-500 trucks are currently permitted through Israeli-controlled crossings each day, with only a few carrying fuel or cooking gas, marking the first such deliveries in nearly two years.
UNRWA highlighted the dire situation, stating that almost all agricultural land in Gaza has been either destroyed or rendered inaccessible, depriving families of income sources. The agency called for "unrestricted and sustained humanitarian access" to help Gaza's food sector recover.
Earlier, the Palestinian Embassy in Cairo announced that Rafah would reopen on Monday for humanitarian movement. However, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office later declared that the crossing's reopening would depend on Hamas's compliance with returning deceased hostages and following the agreed-upon framework.
This announcement followed Hamas's return of two coffins containing hostages' bodies, bringing the total to 12 remains returned under the US- and Egypt-brokered truce. Israel insists that the crossing will remain closed until all agreed returns are completed, linking humanitarian access to the hostage-exchange process.
Hamas criticized Netanyahu's decision as a "flagrant breach of the ceasefire agreement" and accused Israel of violating its commitments to mediators and guarantor parties. The organization claimed that the closure obstructs the evacuation of the wounded and sick, restricts movement, and prevents the entry of equipment needed for recovering bodies from rubble. They accused Israeli forces of violating the ceasefire over 47 times, resulting in the deaths of 38 Palestinians and injuries to 143 since the truce began.
Hamas's statement condemned Netanyahu's actions as aggressive and part of a continued policy of imposing a blockade on over two million Palestinians in Gaza under false pretenses. The group appealed to mediators to pressure Israel into reopening the Rafah crossing, fulfilling all ceasefire agreements, and ending what they described as "ongoing crimes against the Palestinian people in Gaza."