Airdrop aid to Gaza: Why delivering food by air is controversial

The United States said Tuesday it had partnered with Jordan to airlift 36,000 meals to northern Gaza, the second such joint mission in recent days.

The announcement came a day after the World Health Organization said children were starving to death in the north, where an estimated 300,000 Palestinians live with little food and clean water.

However, this strategy has sparked considerable debate, with humanitarian organizations arguing that it fails to meet rapidly growing needs.

It also symbolizes the failure of aid efforts on the ground.

During the war between Israel and Hamas, aid trucks enter southern Gaza through the Egyptian-controlled Rafah crossing and the Israeli-controlled Kerem Shalom crossing. But the north, which was the focus of the first phase of Israel's ground offensive, has been cut off from most aid in recent months.

On February 20, the World Food Program (WFP) temporarily suspended food shipments to northern Gaza after three weeks of emergency relief teams endured “total chaos and violence due to the breakdown of internal order,” including violent looting. announced that it would be discontinued.

Last Thursday, more than 100 Palestinians were killed when a crowd rushed into a support convoy operated by a private contractor that was being escorted by Israeli forces west of Gaza City.

Palestinian health officials said Israeli forces opened fire, killing dozens. The Israeli military said most died after being trampled or run over by aid trucks. The newspaper said soldiers near the support convoy opened fire on people who approached or perceived as a threat.

However, WFP said on Tuesday that an attempt to deliver food supplies to northern Gaza today was “turned away” by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF). IDF has not yet commented.

Following Hamas' attack on Israel on October 7, the Israeli military launched air and ground operations in Gaza, killing approximately 1,200 people and taking 253 hostages. More than 30,000 people have been killed in Gaza since then, according to the region's Hamas-run health ministry.

Airborne aid to Gaza has been carried out more than 20 times in the past few weeks in coordination with the Israeli military, as well as by France, the United Arab Emirates and Egypt, in cooperation with the United States and Jordan.

Gaza resident Ismail Mokbel told BBC Arabic's Gaza Lifeline Radio, an emergency radio service for the region set up in response to the conflict, that aid dropped on Friday was It said it included some pulses and some women's health essentials.

Another man, Abu Yousef, said he was unable to get relief supplies dropped near Al Shifa Hospital in Gaza City.

“All of a sudden we looked up and saw a rescue parachute. That's why we stayed in place.” [where we were] Until the aid landed about 500 meters from us. A lot of people came to help us, but we didn't get much help. ”

Mr Mokbel said not enough aid was being poured in to meet the basic needs of many people in the region.

“Thousands of citizens witnessed aid supplies raining down on them…and when hundreds or thousands of people wait in such areas, only 10 can get things. “Only 20 people left, while others went home empty-handed. Unfortunately, this method of airdropping is not effective, as it is the most appropriate way to deliver aid to the northern Gaza Strip.” .

“Gaza needs land and water routes to deliver aid. [doing it in] Such an approach does not meet the needs of all citizens. ”

Airdrops were initially used to resupply stranded troops on the ground during World War II, but have evolved into a valuable tool for delivering humanitarian aid, first used by the United Nations in 1973. did.

However, as WFP said in a 2021 report, they are considered a “last resort” and will only be used “if more effective options have failed.” South Sudan was the last place where WFP conducted airdrops.

Jan Egeland, executive director of the Norwegian Refugee Council and former UN aid chief, told the BBC after returning from a recent three-day visit to Gaza: “Airdrops are expensive, haphazard and usually the wrong people get the aid. I will accept it,” he said. .

According to WFP, air drops are seven times more expensive than ground aid due to costs associated with aircraft, fuel and personnel.

In addition, each flight can only deliver a relatively small amount compared to what a convoy of trucks can bring in, requiring significant ground coordination within the delivery area, WFP said.

The International Committee of the Red Cross also emphasizes the importance of controlling distribution to prevent people from consuming inappropriate or dangerous products and putting their lives at risk.

“Sudden, unsupervised delivery of food to malnourished and starving people can pose serious risks to life. This needs to be weighed against the potential for delays in the distribution of products,” the group warned. A 2016 report on aid supplies being airlifted into Syria during the civil war.

Air drops may be carried out from various altitudes in conflict areas, ranging from approximately 300 meters to 5,600 meters (985 to 18,370 feet), so robust packaging is required to ensure that the cargo can withstand impact with the ground. WFP added that it is important to ensure that

According to the agency, the ideal drop zone would be a large, open area no bigger than a soccer field, so deliveries were often aimed at Gaza's coastline.

However, local accounts said that in some cases aid supplies fell into the sea or were carried by the wind to Israel.

Gaza resident Samir Abo Saba told BBC Arabic's Gaza Lifeline Radio that he believed the US should do more to pressure its ally Israel towards a ceasefire.

“As a citizen of Gaza, something like this is of no use to me,” he said. “What we want [is] The United States pressured Israel for a ceasefire and asked it to stop supplying arms and missiles to Israel. ”

Some aid workers also share this opinion.

“Instead of indiscriminate airstrikes on Gaza, the U.S. will cut off the flow of weapons to Israel that could be used in indiscriminate attacks and call for an immediate cease-fire,” Oxfam America's Scott Paul wrote on X (formerly Twitter) last week. “We should promote the release of the hostages.” and insists that Israel uphold its obligations to provide humanitarian aid, access and other basic services. ”

Melanie Ward of Palestinian Medical Aid said that the United States, Britain and other countries “immediately open all borders to the Gaza Strip to assist those in need. We should ensure that support is provided.”

But as the crisis deepened, some argued that food must be delivered by any means necessary.

“We need to get food into Gaza in any way we can. It should be by sea,” José Andres, a chef and founder of World Central Kitchen, which is sending food to Gaza, told ABC News. Told.

“I don't think we need to criticize Jordan or the United States for airdropping. In fact, we should praise their efforts to bring food into Gaza.”

President Biden has vowed that the United States will “intensify efforts to open maritime corridors and expand land delivery,” but those efforts have yet to translate into reality on the ground.

Israeli Defense Forces spokesman Maj. Gen. Daniel Hagari said Sunday that the Israeli Defense Forces is facilitating aid convoys and airlifts to northern Gaza “because we want to bring humanitarian aid to Gazan civilians in need.”

He added: “We will continue to expand our humanitarian efforts to civilians in Gaza, achieving our goal of freeing hostages from Hamas and liberating Gaza from Hamas.”

Edited by Alexandra Fouché