Aid being allowed into Gaza, but none distributed yet: UN

WASHINGTON

Despite Israel letting a trickle of aid into Gaza after blocking it for over two months, as yet no humanitarian aid has actually been distributed in the embattled enclave, according to the UN.

"Today one of our teams waited several hours for the Israeli green light to access the Kareem Shalom area and collect the nutrition supplies. Unfortunately, they were not able to bring those supplies into our warehouse,” UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric told reporters Tuesday.

"So just to make it clear, while more supplies have come in to the Gaza Strip, we have not been able to secure the arrival of those supplies into our warehouses and delivery points."

His remarks came after the UN humanitarian affairs office on Tuesday said Israel approved the entry of around 100 trucks carrying aid into Gaza, a significant increase from the nine cleared a day earlier, but still far less than is needed for the population of Gaza, who face near-famine conditions, according to aid groups and international organizations.

"In the end, about four trucks, not five, were allowed in yesterday. Today, we have a few dozen ... But the point is, the logistical, the security complications, just the overall environment make this extremely extremely difficult," Dujarric said.

He said the aid is being kept at the loading dock due to a complex process: “Things have to cross the fence from Israel into Gaza, into an area where the trucks have to be unloaded and reloaded, and then we have to get permission from the Israeli security forces to bring our people in to pick up those trucks."

On Tuesday, Dujarric said, a team was able to get into the area, but given the lateness of the hour, they were not able to bring the trucks out.

"The challenge for us is to secure the routes that go from this sort of loading dock area to our warehouses or distribution points. We have to get clearance, obviously, from the IDF (Israeli army), and we also have to make sure the general area is safe for us.

"There's also been a lot of congestion on the road, so it's been … very challenging," he added.

Distributing aid is a "very long, complex, complicated and dangerous process," Dujarric said.