Palestinians gather to receive a hot meal at a food distribution point in the Nuseirat camp for refugees in the central Gaza Strip. AFP
The first aid distribution in Gaza since early March came as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he was open to a "temporary ceasefire", but reaffirmed the military aimed to bring the entire territory under its control.
Three days after Israel announced it would allow in limited aid, the United Nations "collected around 90 truckloads of goods from the Karm Abu Salem crossing and dispatched them into Gaza", said Stephane Dujarric, spokesman for UN chief Antonio Guterres.
The government media office in Gaza reported the arrival of 87 aid trucks, which it said were allocated to international and local organisations to meet "urgent humanitarian needs".
Palestinians have been scrambling for basic supplies after weeks of near-total isolation, with Israel's blockade leading to critical food and medicine shortages.
Israel has meanwhile kept up its bombardment, with Gaza's health ministry reporting Wednesday that the bodies of 82 people were taken to hospitals across the territory over the previous 24 hours.
'Barely' one daily meal
Umm Talal al-Masri, 53, a displaced Palestinian in Gaza City, described the situation as "unbearable".
"No one is distributing anything to us. Everyone is waiting for aid, but we haven't received anything," she said.
"We barely manage to prepare one meal a day."
Humanitarian groups have said that the amount of aid entering Gaza falls far short of what is required to ease the crisis.
A US-backed private group, the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, that will use contractors, said that it will start moving aid into the territory in "coming days". The United Nations and traditional agencies have said they will not cooperate with the foundation which some have accused of working with Israel.
The GHF has said it will distribute some 300 million meals in its first 90 days of operation.
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