Palestinians in the Gaza Strip are experiencing a brief period of calm after nearly 50 days of incessant bombardment by Israeli forces.
The United Nations said the four-day truce between Israel and Hamas, which took effect Friday, allowed it to increase the delivery of food, water and medicine to the largest volume since the resumption of humanitarian aid convoys to Gaza in October. 21.
The UN was also able to deliver 129,000 liters (34,078 gallons) of fuel – just over 10 percent of the pre-war daily volume – as well as cooking gas, for the first time since the start of the war. war.
On Saturday in Rafah, southern Gaza, many people were waiting to fill gas canisters for cooking. “All the people are hoping and ready for this to make their lives easier,” said resident Ezzeddine Abu Omeira.
For the first time in more than a month, aid also reached northern Gaza, the focus of the Israeli ground offensive. A UN convoy delivered flour to two facilities housing people displaced by the fighting.
Before the war, 500 trucks entered Gaza daily, according to OCHA, the United Nations humanitarian agency.
The UN estimates that 1.7 million of Gaza’s 2.3 million residents have been displaced by the fighting which began on October 7.