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The Israeli army released a video on Friday (March 15) that it said showed a charity ship towing a barge loaded with aid arriving off the coast of Gaza.

Article (news)

Israeli army releases video showing aid ship from Cyprus reaching Gaza coast

Reuters

<div dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;text-align:justify;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:10pt"><span style="color:#000000;background-color:transparent;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">The Israeli army released a video on Friday (March 15) that it said showed a charity ship towing a barge loaded with aid arriving off the coast of Gaza.</span></div><div dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;text-align:justify;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:10pt"><span style="color:#000000;background-color:transparent;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">The ship is in a test run for a new aid route by sea from Cyprus into the devastated Palestinian enclave where famine looms after five months of Israel&#x27;s military campaign.</span></div><div dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;text-align:justify;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:10pt"><span style="color:#000000;background-color:transparent;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">The army also released a video it said showed its soldiers at a docking area under construction on Gaza&#x27;s shore ahead of the arrival of the ship.</span></div><div dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;text-align:justify;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:10pt"><span style="color:#000000;background-color:transparent;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">Reuters was able to confirm the location of the footage and that the vessel seen is the Open Arms charity ship by matching it to Reuters video from central Gaza showing the vessel&#x27;s arrival off the Gaza coast, as well as the latest satellite imagery showing the construction of the offloading jetty.</span></div><div dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;text-align:justify;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:10pt"><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/2024/3/13/un-agency-says-warehouse-struck-amid-race-for-gaza-aid-100"></a><span style="color:#000000;background-color:transparent;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap"><a class="fr-green fr-strong" href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/2024/3/13/un-agency-says-warehouse-struck-amid-race-for-gaza-aid-100">READ: UN agency says warehouse struck amid race for Gaza aid</a></span></div><div dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;text-align:justify;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:10pt"><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/2024/3/13/pallets-of-aid-aidropped-into-northern-gaza-2218"></a><span style="color:#000000;background-color:transparent;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap"><a class="fr-green fr-strong" href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/2024/3/13/pallets-of-aid-aidropped-into-northern-gaza-2218">READ: Pallets of aid airdropped into northern Gaza</a></span><span style="color:#000000;background-color:transparent;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap"></span></div><div dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;text-align:justify;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:10pt"><span style="color:#000000;background-color:transparent;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">The ship, arranged by the World Central Kitchen (WCK) charity, is carrying nearly 200 tonnes of aid to be delivered via a jetty being prepared in Gaza, with a second ship expected to sail soon.</span></div><div dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;text-align:justify;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:10pt"><span style="color:#000000;background-color:transparent;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">Floating on a barge attached by rope to a salvage ship, rough seas appeared to slow down the cargo reaching land, footage posted by a WCK official on social media showed.</span></div><div dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;text-align:justify;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:10pt"><span style="color:#000000;background-color:transparent;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">WCK have been constructing a makeshift jetty which would allow the flat-bottomed barge to approach Gaza&#x27;s shallow waters for lack of proper port infrastructure.</span></div><div dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;text-align:justify;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:10pt"><span style="color:#000000;background-color:transparent;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">There are few details on how the aid delivery and distribution will work once it is ready to unload in Gaza, with U.N. relief agencies having described huge obstacles to getting relief supplies to those in need.</span></div><div dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;text-align:justify;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:10pt"><span style="color:#000000;background-color:transparent;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">If the new sea route is successful, it may help to ease the hunger crisis affecting Gaza, where much of the population faces malnourishment and hospitals in the worst-stricken northern areas have reported children dying of starvation.</span></div><div dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;text-align:justify;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:10pt"><span style="color:#000000;background-color:transparent;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">However, bringing in aid by sea and through air drops will not be enough to make up for difficulties getting supplies by land, aid agencies have repeatedly said.</span></div><div dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;text-align:justify;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:10pt"><span style="color:#000000;background-color:transparent;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">The war in Gaza began on Oct. 7 when Hamas fighters rampaged into Israel killing 1,200 people and seizing 253 hostages according to Israeli tallies.</span></div><div dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;text-align:justify;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:10pt"><span style="color:#000000;background-color:transparent;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">Israel&#x27;s air and ground campaign has since killed more than 31,000 Palestinians according to health authorities, while driving most of the population from their homes and pushing the enclave towards famine.</span></div><div><br/></div><div dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;text-align:justify;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:10pt"><span style="color:#000000;background-color:transparent;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap"><em>(Production: Roleen Tafakji)</em></span></div><div><br/></div><div><br/></div>

<p>The Israeli army released a video on Friday (March 15) that it said showed a charity ship towing a barge loaded with aid arriving off the coast of Gaza.</p>