image source, Reuters
US C-130 planes dropped about 38,000 meals in Gaza.
The United States carried out the first air drop of humanitarian aid in Gaza, which included more than 30,000 meals via parachutes dropped by three military aircraft, amid some criticism from humanitarian organizations and people who were at the drop site.
The operation, which was carried out in cooperation with the Jordanian Air Force, is the first of many operations announced by US President Joe Biden, after about 112 people were killed last Thursday as crowds gathered to reach an aid convoy outside Gaza City.
Health officials in Gaza confirmed that the victims who were taken to hospitals were hit by heavy-caliber ammunition, while Israel says that most of the Palestinians were killed in a stampede, indicating that it is conducting an investigation into the incident.
The first American airdrop comes at a time when a prominent American official revealed the framework of a six-week ceasefire agreement in Gaza.
How much aid was dropped by air and why was it controversial?
US Central Command announced in a statement that US C-130 aircraft dropped about 38,000 meals along the coast southwest of Gaza, as part of bilateral efforts between the US and Jordanian air forces.
The meals, packaged in sealed containers, contain enough calories for one day, according to the Associated Press, citing American officials.
Other countries, including Britain, France, Egypt and Jordan, had previously carried out air drops of aid in Gaza, but this is the first time an operation of this kind has been carried out by the United States.
Biden also announced that the United States “will redouble efforts to open a sea corridor and enhance deliveries by land.”
Aid is usually delivered to Gaza by land through border crossings controlled by Israel and Egypt, and most of these crossings have been closed during intermittent periods of the war, with limited amounts of aid trucks reaching Gaza.
The United Nations says that a quarter of Gaza’s population, 2.3 million people, face famine.
“That’s not enough”
Ismail Muqbel, a Gaza resident, told BBC Arabic that the airdrop aid consisted of some legumes and a few health necessities for women.
Abu Youssef, a Gaza resident who was close to Al-Shifa Hospital in northern Gaza, said he was unable to reach aid. “Suddenly, when we were looking at the sky, we saw parachutes dropping aid. And so we stayed in the place (where we were),” he said. “Until aid fell about 500 meters from our location. There were a lot of people, but the aid was little, so we could not get anything.”
Moqbel explained that there was not enough aid to meet the needs of a large number of citizens who face a shortage of all the necessities of life.
He added: “Thousands of citizens watched the aid falling on them, and with hundreds or thousands of people in such areas, only 10 to 20 people get things, while others return with nothing. Unfortunately, this airdrop method is not “The most appropriate way to deliver aid to northern Gaza.”
He said: “Gaza needs a land and water route to deliver aid instead of using a method that does not meet the needs of all citizens.”
image source, USAF/REUTERS
The meals contain one day’s worth of calories in tightly sealed containers.
‘Expensive and indiscriminate’
Airdrops were first used during World War II, with the aim of supplying isolated forces in the field with the necessary supplies. They have evolved into a valuable tool for delivering humanitarian aid, and were first used by the United Nations in 1973.
Despite this, it is considered a “last resort” and is only implemented “if the most effective options fail,” according to the World Food Program in a report published in 2021.
South Sudan is the last place where the World Food Program resorted to air drops of aid.
“Airdrops are expensive, indiscriminate and often result in the wrong people getting aid,” Jan Egeland, head of relief at the Norwegian Refugee Council, told the BBC after returning from a three-day visit to Gaza.
The World Food Program added that airdrops are seven times more expensive than ground aid, due to aircraft, fuel and personnel costs.
However, only relatively small quantities can be delivered per trip, compared to what a convoy of trucks can transport, in addition to the significant coordination required within the delivery area, according to the World Food Programme.
The International Committee of the Red Cross also stresses the importance of monitoring distribution to avoid people risking their lives by consuming inappropriate or unsafe quantities, as it stated in a 2016 report when aid was airdropped in Syria during the war in the country.
“Delivering unexpected and uncontrolled types of food to people suffering from malnutrition or even hunger can pose serious risks to life,” the report stated. “Therefore, these risks must be balanced against delivering anything by air, or delaying deliveries during operations.” Wild.”
The World Food Program added that air drops can be carried out from different heights, ranging from about 300 to 5,600 meters in conflict areas, and accordingly, ensuring strong packaging for aid is crucial in order to ensure that shipments are able to withstand the impact of collision with the ground.
The program says drop zones must be suitably open, at least the size of a football field, which is why drops have often been carried out in coastal areas of Gaza.
However, this sometimes led to aid falling into the sea or being blown into Israel by the winds, according to local accounts.
image source, EMPICS
Other countries, including Britain, France, Egypt and Jordan, have previously dropped aid into Gaza.
“A ceasefire is necessary”
Samir Abu Sobha, a Gaza resident, told the BBC that he believes the United States should make more efforts and pressure Israel for a ceasefire.
He added: “So I believe, as a citizen of Gaza, that these things are useless. All we want is for America to pressure Israel to cease fire and stop supplying Israel with weapons and missiles.”
This was confirmed by some humanitarian organizations. Last week, Oxfam International criticized the Biden administration’s initiative, considering that the airdrops “will be used mostly to ease the consciences of senior American officials whose policies have contributed to ongoing atrocities and the risk of famine in Gaza,” according to Scott. Paul, a director at the organization.
Others believe that in light of the worsening humanitarian crisis in the Palestinian territories, food must be delivered there “in any way possible.”
“We need to get food to Gaza in any way possible,” José Andrés, the chef and founder of World Central Kitchen, which provides food to Gaza and who was nominated by Democrats for the Nobel Peace Prize earlier this year, told ABC. We must send him by sea… We must put the boats in front of Gaza.”
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