International efforts are accelerating to transport humanitarian aid by sea to the Gaza Strip, which is threatened with famine and bombarded by Israel, which only allows aid trucks to enter in dribs and drabs. After five months of war, the disastrous humanitarian situation in the territory has led several Arab and Western countries, including the United States and France, to carry out new airdrops of food and medical aid.
Information to remember
⇒ 15 Houthi drones shot down off the coast of Yemen
⇒ 5 dead in a drop of packages loaded with humanitarian aid
⇒ A ceasefire before Ramadan “promises to be difficult”, according to Joe Biden
Aid ship set to leave Cyprus for Gaza
A US charity said it was loading aid for Gaza onto a boat in Cyprus, the first shipment destined for the war-torn territory, via a sea corridor the European Commission hopes will open this weekend. end. “We have been preparing for weeks, with our partner NGO Open Arms, for the opening of a maritime aid corridor which would allow us to intensify our efforts in the region,” said the NGO World Central Kitchen. “Our ship is preparing to sail […] loaded with tons of food, water and vital supplies for Palestinian civilians.”
The NGO plans to tow a barge loaded with supplies for the population of Gaza. During a visit to Cyprus on Friday, the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, indicated that the opening of a humanitarian corridor to the Gaza Strip could be done “with a little luck this Sunday”. .
15 Houthi drones shot down off Yemen
American and allied forces shot down 15 drones fired by Iran-backed Yemeni Houthi rebels in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, the US Middle East Military Command (Centcom) said on Saturday March 9. ). The “large-scale” attack by Yemeni rebels occurred before dawn in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, Centcom said.
It was one of the largest attacks by the Houthi rebels since they began a campaign of drone and missile strikes against ships transiting the Red Sea, vital for global trade, in November in a sign of solidarity with the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.
5 dead in humanitarian aid drop
International efforts are accelerating to deliver humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip. On Friday, several Arab and Western countries, including the United States and France, carried out new airdrops of food and medical aid. But the fall of packages dropped by planes on Gaza City killed five people and injured ten others on Friday, according to a hospital source. A witness interviewed by Agence France Presse said that the parachute of a package had not opened and that the cargo had “fell like a rocket onto the roof of one of the houses”. The Jordanian and American armies affirmed that none of their aircraft was at the origin of the tragedy.
Israeli settlements in the Palestinian territories constitute a war crime
The establishment and continued expansion of settlements “is equivalent to the transfer by Israel of its own civilian population to the territories it occupies” and “such transfers constitute a war crime”, denounces a report from the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner united with human rights. “Reports released this week that Israel plans to build 3,476 additional homes for settlers in Maale Adoumim, Efrat and Kedar go against international law,” said Volker Türk, the High Commissioner for Human Rights. man, quoted in a press release published on the occasion of the publication of the report.
In its reaction, Israel’s permanent representation to the UN in Geneva accused the High Commissioner for Human Rights of ignoring Israeli victims but did not comment on the merits of the accusations.
A ceasefire before Ramadan “promises to be difficult”, according to Joe Biden
US President Joe Biden said on Friday that it would be “difficult” to obtain a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip before Ramadan at the start of next week. Joe Biden said he was “very” concerned about the violence that could break out in East Jerusalem, a Palestinian territory annexed and occupied by Israel, during this period.
Hamas on Friday called on Palestinians to “mobilize” and “flock” during Ramadan to the al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem, where tensions are feared. Hamas said on Friday it will make “no compromise” on its demands for a permanent ceasefire in the Gaza Strip and a withdrawal of Israeli troops in exchange for any agreement on the release of the hostages .
Construction of temporary port in Gaza will take 60 days: Pentagon
The United States’ establishment of a temporary port for aid deliveries to Gaza will take up to 60 days and likely involve more than 1,000 troops, the Pentagon announced Friday. The United States will “establish a temporary offshore jetty that will allow cargo ships to transfer cargo to smaller boats for transport and unloading along a temporary causeway to deliver humanitarian aid to Gaza ” Pentagon spokesperson Pat Ryder told reporters.
It “could provide more than two million meals a day to the citizens of Gaza,” he said, adding that “there will be no American soldiers on the ground in Gaza” as part of this operation. , for which Washington “will work with regional partners”.