Israel facilitates record 419 humanitarian aid trucks into Gaza

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The Coordination of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT), an Israeli Defense Department organization tasked with managing activities in Judea, Samaria and Gaza, reported that a record number of more than 400 humanitarian aid trucks drove into the Gaza Strip on Monday.

“419 humanitarian aid trucks were inspected and transferred to Gaza today (Apr. 8). This is the highest number of aid trucks that entered Gaza in one day since the start of the war. It follows a previous high of 322 trucks that were inspected and facilitated yesterday,” COGAT wrote on 𝕏 with an accompanying video clip.

🚚419 humanitarian aid trucks were inspected and transferred to Gaza today (Apr. 8). This is the highest number of aid trucks that entered Gaza in one day since the start of the war. It follows a previous high of 322 trucks that were inspected and facilitated yesterday.
👇 pic.twitter.com/zsJ4TWly6v
— COGAT (@cogatonline) April 8, 2024

In addition, U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) announced it had airdropped more than 6,000 pounds of food in northern Gaza.

The issue of humanitarian aid has been politicized as a tool to pressure Israel to halt its military operation against Hamas. The United Nations, along with some governments and international organizations, have accused Israel of starving Gazan civilians.

In late March, a UN-backed report by the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC), claimed that “famine is imminent” in Gaza, projecting “catastrophic hunger” affecting half of Gaza’s roughly two million residents by mid-July.

However, COGAT responded by saying the report was factually inaccurate, and based on data provided by the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry, “which has a strategic interest in presenting fundamentally misleading information”.

COGAT also dismissed the unverified claims of severe water scarcity in Gaza.

“Based on our assessment, the amount of water produced in the Gaza Strip through two local water desalination plants, an Emirati water desalination plant located in Egypt, water lines from Israel, and the entry of diesel fuel to refuel the local water pumping system – the daily average quantity of water [stands at] over 20 liters (over 5 gallons) of drinking and cooking water per person per day.”

In early April, Israel provided updated data, showing that it had facilitated the entry of more than 252,000 tons of food and 3.3 million cubic meters (871.8 million gallons) of water into the Gaza Strip, since the Iron Swords War began on Oct. 7. In addition, Israel has provided around 20 tons of medical equipment into the Hamas-controlled coastal enclave.

However, the accidental Israeli strike against a World Central Kitchen humanitarian aid convoy that killed seven workers, has only increased international pressure on Israel to take the blame for the humanitarian situation in Gaza. The IDF swiftly apologized and dismissed the responsible military officials who had misidentified the aid convoy as a Hamas decoy.

While U.S. President Joe Biden initially backed Israel’s right to self-defense against Hamas, he and other senior U.S. officials have become increasingly critical of Israel amid the deteriorating humanitarian situation in Gaza.

Following the accidental strike against the aid workers, Biden claimed that Israel has failed to provide sufficient protection for humanitarian aid workers in Gaza, ignoring the fact that Hamas systematically uses civilian facilities as human shields, a war crime under international law.

“This is a major reason why distributing humanitarian aid in Gaza has been so difficult – because Israel has not done enough to protect aid workers trying to deliver desperately needed help to civilians,” Biden stated. “Incidents like yesterday’s simply should not happen. Israel has also not done enough to protect civilians.”