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United States and Jordan troops air-dropped aid to Palestine civilians, according to US Central Command. However, no water or medical supplies were reportedly included.
Joe Biden is standing on business just one day after promising to pull out “every stop” to get more aid to hungry and displaced Gazan residents, CNN reports.
Ahead of the airdrop, the International Crisis Group’s UN director, Richard Rowan, took to X to share some words:
“Humanitarian workers always complain that airdrops are good photo opportunities but a lousy way to deliver aid.”
The US Air Force and the Royal Jordanian Air Force united in a tag team operation. CENTCOM reports US C-130 aircraft carried and released 38,000 meals along the Gazan coast. A total of three aircraft carried 22 bundles each, a US official reported, per CNN.
CENTCOM said, “These airdrops are part of a sustained effort to get more aid into Gaza, including by expanding the flow of aid through land corridors and routes.”
White House officials stated Saturday’s aid operation was “successful.”
“The fact that today’s airdrop was successful is an important test case to show that we can do this again in the coming days and weeks successfully,” a senior administration official told reporters.
Furthermore, the official reportedly stated that the Defense Department is planning to implement additional drops in the coming days but declined to detail the operations.
President Biden announced the upcoming drops alongside Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni in the Oval Office. Additionally, Biden shared he is working to negotiate a ceasefire that would allow more supplies to enter Gaza.
What’s more, the President said he would “insist” that Israel allow more vehicles and routes for aid to enter Gaza.
“We’re going to insist that Israel facilitate more trucks and more routes to get more and more people the help they need, no excuses,” Biden asserted. “Innocent lives are on the line, and children’s lives are on the line.”
This is the President’s first time delivering aid to Gaza, while the United Arab Emirates and France have previously dropped aid to citizens.
Before the US and Jordan airborne operation, several aid agencies stated aid by air is ineffective, as the United Nations alerts that hundreds of thousands of Palestinians are on the edge of famine, as previously reported.
