Gaza strip: German Air Force throws relief supplies

The Bundeswehr has started its relief campaign for needy people in the Gaza Strip. German transport aircraft had dropped 34 pallets with almost 14 tons of food and medical equipment over the area, the Ministry of Defense said.

According to the UN, the Gaza Strip is right in front of a famine. Israel controls all access to the coastal area on the Mediterranean and did not allow any or only a few aid deliveries to be passed over several months. According to Israeli representation, the pressure on the Islamist Hamas should be increased to leave the last of the hostages kidnapped on October 7, 2023.

Since last Sunday – according to the worldwide criticism of the horrific situation of the Palestinian civilian population – Israel has again allowed major deliveries on the country path and has supported the dropping of relief goods by ally states such as Jordan and the United Arab Emirates (VAE). Germany takes part in the campaign with two aircraft that are loaded on a military base in Jordan and throw urgently needed food and equipment over the Gaza Strip.

Defense Minister Boris Pistorius (SPD) emphasized that the auxiliary flights could only contribute a very small part and bring the most alerted to humans. “In Gaza, there is a lack of food and medication these days. For many people – also for many children – it is about survival.” He expects Israel to ensure the comprehensive humanitarian care of people who have suffered for months.

Foreign Minister Johann WadePhul (CDU) also emphasized that it would be worked out under high pressure to rebuild the humanitarian land path with experienced UN organizations. Auxiliary flights could not replace these deliveries, only by land there could be sufficient relief supplies. “That is why we urge the Israeli government in our conversations to enable the UN and the international aid organizations to provide safe access and, above all, safe distribution.”

Last year, too, the Bundeswehr had already participated in aid flights above the Gaza Strip. A total of 316 tons of relief supplies were dropped in 39 flights in March 2024. After that, the flights were set because there were temporarily better transport routes.

International organizations consider the dropping of relief goods out of the air because of the relatively small quantities to be ineffective and expensive. Compared to trucks on the ground, very few foods could reach the coastal strips. Helpers also point out that the pallets in such a densely populated area could injure or kill people on the ground.

In contrast to auxiliary deliveries with trucks, the thrown foods can hardly be distributed in a targeted manner. In this way, injuries, people with disabilities or single parents with children could have problems getting to the relief supplies at all. There is “a bit the law of the stronger”, warn aid organizations.

According to descriptions of eyewitnesses and helpers, this also applies more and more to trucks that make it inside the Gaza Strip. The population is so desperate that there are chaotic scenes. Many loads were looted by crowds before they could reach the warehouses. Observers also attribute these conditions to the collapse of any social order in the war -destroyed Gaza strip, which the Israeli blockade policy had tightened.

Germany is now expanding its help for the starving population financially. Foreign Minister WadePhul announced additional funds of five million euros for the UN World Food program WFP during a visit to Israel. “Among other things, bakeries and soup kitchens are supported in order to provide the people in Gaza with bread and warm meals in the medium term,” he said. The Federal Government also finances a Maltese field hospital in Gaza City.

The Foreign Minister did not rule out that part of the help could be branched off from the terrorist Hamas. But: “The humanitarian catastrophe in the Gaza Strip is now so large that it is not justified to build further hurdles here.” Incidentally, the best way to prevent abuse is to let in as many foods and relief goods as possible into the Gaza Strip.

According to the Federal Foreign Office, German humanitarian aid for the Palestinian areas has been more than 330 million euros since the beginning of the Gaza War. More than 95 percent of them would be used for the population in the Gaza Strip. Most recently, the aids were increased by up to 31 million euros in May.

The trigger of the Gaza War was the attack by Hamas and other Islamist terrorist organizations to Israel on October 7, 2023, in which around 1,200 people were killed and more than 250 were delayed as hostages into the Gaza strips.

As the health authority controlled by Hamas announced on Tuesday, 60,034 Palestinians were killed in the past almost 22 months. 145,870 other people suffered injuries. The majority of the victims are said to be women, minors and the elderly.

The numbers cannot be checked independently and do not distinguish between civilians and fighters. However, they see UN organizations largely reliable.