Saudi Arabia’s aid to Gaza is threatened by the closure of Rafah, an aid official told Reuters
Written by Suleiman Al-Khalidi
AMMAN (Reuters) – Saudi Arabia’s main aid agency said on Thursday Israel’s closure of the Rafah and other Gaza crossings was hampering its efforts to help send life-saving food, some of which was at risk of spoilage.
“We have hundreds of trucks now full in Rafah because of the closure of Rafah and other corridors. We are facing major restrictions to reach the people of Gaza,” said Abdullah al Rabeeah, the head of King Salman Humanitarian Aid and the government. Relief Center (KSRelief).
Rabeeah, whose agency has provided more than six billion in aid around the world in the past few years, said that food in hundreds of trucks waiting to enter Gaza and stored in warehouses may be nearing the end of the closure of the crossing since May 7, when Israel stepped up. it’s annoying.
Food and medicine for Palestinians in Gaza are being stockpiled in Egypt while occasional supplies are being shipped via Jordan and the West Bank to Gaza at the Kerem Shalom crossing, UN officials said.
Some officials say up to 2,500 trucks were waiting, with Egyptian warehouses almost full.
“We are worried that the food will expire because the tunnel is closed and we are looking at that food … So it is a big burden for us,” Rabeeah, who is also an adviser to the Saudi palace and a former health minister, told Reuters.
The war in Gaza began when Hamas gunmen stormed southern Israel on October 7, killing 1,200 people and taking about 250 hostages back to Gaza, according to Israeli figures. Israel’s retaliatory attacks have killed 38,000 people, according to Gaza’s health ministry.
Rabeeah signed agreements with senior Palestinian health and aid officials in Amman to treat some of Gaza’s cancer patients in the kingdom. He said another multi-million dollar project will support thousands of Gazans who have lost their limbs.
Rabeeah echoed the sentiments of UN agencies and non-governmental organizations that Israel should immediately lift restrictions and stop using food aid as a weapon of war.
“All corridors must be opened without restrictions to save the lives of children, women and old women,” he said.
COGAT, the Israeli Defense Ministry agency tasked with coordinating the delivery of aid to the Palestinian territories, said it is stepping up efforts to increase aid to Gaza.
The Saudi government’s aid arm launched an “air and sea bridge” from Riyadh to Al Arish and Rafah, has flown more than 54 civilian and military aircraft and sent eight ships to the port of Jeddah in cooperation with the UN, Rabeeah said.
“Need is the way, more than what the people of Gaza are getting,” he added, saying the organization has emergency plans to increase aid, including temporary homes, once the war ends.
“If there is a cessation of hostilities and a cessation of long-term fighting, you cannot leave people living in tents,” Rabeeah said, adding that his country will play a major role in the reconstruction of the area. He did not elaborate.
