On Sunday 19 January, the European Commissioner for Equality, Crisis Preparedness and Management, Hadja Lahbib, called on X for “unrestricted” access for humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip to “ease the suffering”.
On the same day, the entry into force of an initial 42-day truce between Hamas and Israel led to the arrival of more than 630 lorries loaded with humanitarian supplies, according to UN estimates released on Monday. At least 300 of these lorries drove towards the north of the Palestinian enclave.
In addition, 25 lorries carried Qatari fuel through the main Kerem Shalom crossing point, with the aim of supporting the supply of electricity to hospitals and makeshift shelters, according to the Qatari Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Monday. The agreement provides for the shipment of more than 1 million litres of fuel a day for the first 10 days of the truce.
At the same time, thousands of displaced Palestinians returned to their homes in the hope of not finding them reduced to rubble. According to Gaza’s Civil Defence, quoted by AFP, the bodies of “10,000 people” are still “under the rubble”.
On Saturday, the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs, Kaja Kallas, also renewed the EU’s call for unimpeded access and distribution of aid to Gaza, including via UN agencies. “Displaced Gazans should be ensured a safe and dignified return to their homes”, she said in a press release. (Original version in French by Bernard Denuit)