Palestinians wait to receive food portions from a charity kitchen in Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza Strip. AFP
The convoy is organized under the Egyptian Red Crescent’s Zad El-Ezza: From Egypt to Gaza initiative, launched on 27 July in a bid to stem the famine conditions in the strip.
The 25th convoy is carrying medical equipment, children’s supplies, medicines, dry food, canned goods, water, and clothing.
The dispatch comes amid mounting alarm from international organizations over the rapidly deteriorating humanitarian situation in Gaza.
On Friday, the UN formally declared a famine in Gaza — the first in the Middle East.
In response, Israel demanded that the UN-backed Integrated Food Security Phase Classification Initiative (IPC) immediately retract what Israel called a "fabricated" report.
However, the IPC noted that famine was affecting approximately 500,000 people in the Gaza governorate, which encompasses about a fifth of the Palestinian territory, including Gaza City.
It also warned that countless Palestinians face the threat of death from malnutrition.
According to the Palestinian Health Ministry, at least 313 people — over 100 of them children — have succumbed to hunger and related illnesses since October 2023, with the majority of fatalities reported over the last five months.
Meanwhile, World Food Programme (WFP) Chief Operating Officer Carl Skau said the trickle of aid permitted by Israel is nowhere near sufficient for Gaza’s 2.4 million residents, describing it as only “a drop in the ocean” compared to the actual needs.
On Wednesday, the UN health agency WHO warned that disease and hunger in Gaza will only worsen unless Israel lifts its restrictions on large-scale aid delivery and allows access across the strip.
According to the UN, by the end of September, over 640,000 people in Gaza are expected to face Phase 5 catastrophic hunger, with 1.14 million in Phase 4 emergency conditions and another 396,000 in Phase 3 crisis.
The IPC scale ranges from Phase 1, “food secure,” to Phase 5, “famine/humanitarian catastrophe.”
To alleviate the suffering of hungry Palestinians, Egypt has contributed over 70 percent of all aid that entered Gaza.
It has delivered over 45,000 trucks carrying upwards of half a million tons of food and medical supplies, including 368,000 tons from Egypt and another 132,000 tons from other nations.
Moreover, Cairo has intensified its mediation efforts, along with Qatar, to reach a truce between Israel and Hamas, frequently urging Tel Aviv to permit the swift and unconditional flow of humanitarian supplies.
Israel's 22-month genocidal war has killed nearly 63,000 Palestinians and wounded over 160,000 — mostly women and children — with some 9,000 people still unaccounted for.
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