US Military Airdrops Vital Aid to Gaza Amidst Child Malnutrition Crisis

The US military, in collaboration with the Royal Jordanian Air Force, recently conducted its first aid airdrop into Gaza, where a significant portion of the population is at risk of starvation.

Using C-130 Hercules transport planes, they delivered 66 bundles containing over 38,000 meals along Gaza’s Mediterranean coastline.

This initiative follows Israel’s blockade of food, water, medicine, and other supplies to Gaza, with only minimal aid entering from the south. The blockade intensified after the militant group Hamas killed 1,200 people and took around 250 hostages on October 7, 2023.

Before the conflict, Gaza relied on a daily influx of 500 supply trucks, significantly dwindling to 97 per day in February.

Reports of people resorting to eating animal feed and children succumbing to malnutrition and dehydration have heightened the urgency for aid. Despite repeated pleas from the US for more help to be allowed by road, using costly and inefficient airdrops highlights concerns over Washington’s diminishing influence over its ally.

In addition to the US, Egypt, France, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates have also conducted aid airdrops into Gaza since the conflict began. Recently, the UK collaborated with Jordan to drop aid, including medicines, fuel, and food, to Tal al Hawa Hospital in northern Gaza.

However, aid efforts have not been without risks and controversies. Hamas-run Gaza health authorities claimed that Israeli forces killed over 100 people attempting to reach a relief convoy near Gaza City.

Israel countered, stating that the victims were trampled in the rush to access aid trucks.

US President Joe Biden expressed condolences over the deaths while announcing the continuation of the airdrop mission, acknowledging the desperation of the situation. Despite the advantages of speed in using planes for aid delivery, airdrops pose challenges, such as the risk to civilians on the ground and the potential diversion of aid to militant groups.

John Kirby, a White House national security spokesman, emphasized that while airdrops supplement ground deliveries, they cannot fully replace them.

He highlighted the complexity of humanitarian assistance airdrops, underscoring their role as a supplementary measure rather than a primary aid delivery means.