UK confirms major aid delivery to Gaza

By : JD

Jordan Daily -The United Kingdom has dispatched its largest aid delivery to Gaza, with over 2,000 tonnes of food aid now being distributed by the United Nations’ World Food Programme (WFP), the Foreign Secretary confirmed today.

This substantial aid package, funded by the UK government, will provide relief to families in need across the region. It supplements an earlier delivery of 150 tonnes of relief items, including blankets and tents, which arrived last week and are being distributed by UNICEF. A fully-equipped UK field hospital, operated by UK-Med, has also been established in Gaza and is currently providing essential medical care.

The aid includes fortified wheat flour for bakeries, hot meals, and Ready To Eat (RTE) food parcels, designed to feed over 275,000 Gazans. Each parcel, sufficient for a family of five, contains canned vegetables, meat, fish, and date bars, and can provide half of the family’s daily calorie needs for 15 days.

The delivery comes in the wake of a report from the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) warning of an imminent famine in the northern Gaza Strip, with the south also at risk if conditions continue to deteriorate.

Foreign Secretary David Cameron emphasised the importance of maintaining the flow of aid into Gaza. “We need sustained humanitarian access by road to get more aid in,” he said. “We continue to push Israel to allow more crossings to open and for longer, and for healthcare, water and sanitation to be restored.”

The latest delivery was facilitated by Jordan, which has played a key role in supporting the UK’s humanitarian response. Since the opening of the corridor in December 2023, the Jordanian government and the Jordan Hashemite Charity Organization have ensured the passage of almost 600 trucks of humanitarian assistance into Gaza, carrying 8,000 tons of relief and food items. Aid from 10 different international agencies, including UK partners WFP and UNICEF, has reached Gaza.

The UK remains committed to ensuring aid reaches those most in need as Palestinians continue to face a devastating and escalating humanitarian crisis in Gaza, the statement noted.

The Foreign Secretary has urged Israel to increase its capacity to safely distribute aid within Gaza, including the opening of a northern land crossing and the issuance of more visas to UN staff capable of delivering aid upon its arrival in Gaza.