Baybars Can
16 October 2023•Update: 16 October 2023
ANKARA
The Turkish Red Crescent continues to deliver humanitarian assistance to Palestinians affected by Israeli onslaught on Gaza.
The Turkish Red Crescent said in a statement on Monday that it is collaborating with local teams to distribute humanitarian assistance because no outside relief workers can enter Gaza.
The statement noted that the Turkish Red Crescent is seeking to establish a safe humanitarian corridor to bring relief materials from outside the Gaza Strip.
Several countries sent relief and humanitarian materials to the Palestinian people in Gaza, but these materials are stuck near Egypt's borders as Israel continues to refuse to allow aid into the Gaza Strip.
Ten days into the conflict with Palestinian group Hamas, Israeli bombardment and blockade of the Gaza Strip has continued, with over 1 million people – almost half the total population of Gaza – having been displaced, according to the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East.
Gaza is experiencing a dire humanitarian crisis with no electricity, while water, food, fuel, and medical supplies are running out, as civilians flee to the south following Israeli warning to evacuate northern areas.
The fighting began when Hamas on Oct. 7 initiated Operation Al-Aqsa Flood, a multi-pronged surprise attack including a barrage of rocket launches and infiltrations into Israel via land, sea, and air. It said the incursion was in retaliation for the storming of the Al-Aqsa Mosque and increased settler violence.
The Israeli military then launched Operation Swords of Iron against Hamas targets within the Gaza Strip.
The number of Palestinians killed in Israeli airstrikes in Gaza has risen to 2,750, including 750 children.
In Israel, 1,300 have been killed.
* Writing by Ahmed Asmar
