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Southern Gaza Strip – In a rare moment of access to the war-torn Palestinian territory, CBS News visited a critical aid distribution center inside the Gaza Strip, near Israel’s Karem Shalom border crossing, on Wednesday. The humanitarian crisis in Gaza after more than a year of war between Israel and Hamas it remains to say.
Israeli officials say about 200 trucks cross from Israel into Gaza via the Kerem Shalom checkpoint every day, on average, carrying desperately needed supplies for Palestinian civilians caught in the crossfire of the ongoing conflict.
But the burning question remains: does help reach those who need it most?
At the distribution center, truck drivers and aid workers told CBS News about the struggles they face, including the looting of humanitarian goods, which they said remains a significant problem in Gaza. Chaos and lawlessness in the region often prevent supplies from reaching their recipients.
“The aid is not coming because the gangs are intercepting it on the road,” said Mohammed Shehibar, a Palestinian logistics coordinator from Al-Rimal, a neighborhood in Gaza City, who spoke to us as he watched workers load forklifts full of fresh fuel. fruit.
He said that out of 100 trucks that left this place, “only 70 or 60 reached their destination.” The others, he said, were robbed.
“The only guarantee for the safe delivery of aid is that there will be some stability in Gaza,” he said. “They (the gangs) occupy positions near the border … near the (Israeli) army … and do not face any problems.”
International aid agencies they also complained that it was not enough help enters the Gaza Strip.
Last Sunday on CBS News’ “Face The Nation with Margaret Brennan,” Cindy McCainhead of the World Food Program, said her organization was able to get only two aid trucks through the crossing in November.
“That’s not true,” said Colonel Abdullah Halabi, head of Israel’s Gaza Coordination and Liaison Directorate. “The humanitarian community in the last two weeks alone, with our development of facilities around Gaza, as well as at other crossings, have been able to move an average of 200 trucks into central and southern Gaza.”
Israeli officials insist that massive aid flows to Gaza. They stress the difficulties of delivering supplies in an active war zone and call for greater assistance from the international community to ensure safe passage and efficient distribution within a decimated enclave.
Israel launched its military offensive in Gaza after Hamas’s brutal attack on October 7, 2023which killed around 1200 people. More than 100 hostages seized by Hamas are still being held. Since it is the beginning of the war in Gaza, at least 44,580 Palestinians were killed, according to the Hamas-run Ministry of Health, and most of its residents were internally displaced.
The danger was palpable during our visit, with the sound of shelling echoing nearby. Aid truck drivers are risking their lives to navigate the dangerous conditions created by the destroyed infrastructure and security threats inside Gaza, highlighting the enormous challenges facing both aid agencies and civilians in Gaza.
However, there has been cautious hope of late, as reports suggest that ongoing negotiations on a hostage release agreement could lead to a temporary ceasefire and an increase in humanitarian aid to Gaza.
If such a deal goes through, distribution centers like the one on the Gaza side of the Kerem Shalom crossing could soon be flooded with additional supplies, offering a lifeline to those in desperate need.
