Jordanian army airdrops humanitarian aid in northern Gaza Strip

By Laith Junaidi

AMMAN, Jordan (AA) - The Jordanian army said Friday that it carried out three airdrops of food aid in northern Gaza.

"The Jordanian Armed Forces executed three airdrops of food aid in several areas in northern Gaza," the army said in a statement.

The airdrops came "within the framework of efforts by Jordan to support the people in the Gaza Strip and bolster their resilience amid the ongoing Israeli escalation," the statement added.

It also emphasized that this step is part of "Jordan's ongoing efforts to send more medical, relief, and food aid to the people in the Gaza Strip."

"The operation aims to alleviate the impact of the war and compensate for the severe shortages in food and medicine due to the continued Israeli aggression in the enclave," it said.

On Thursday, the army also said it executed two airdrops of relief and food aid to the Gaza Strip, in collaboration with Oman and Bahrain.

Israel has launched a deadly military offensive on the Gaza Strip since an Oct. 7 attack by the Palestinian group Hamas, which Tel Aviv says killed nearly 1,200 people.

At least 30,228 Palestinians have since been killed and 71,377 others injured amid mass destruction and shortages of necessities.

Israel has also imposed a crippling blockade on the Gaza Strip, leaving its population, particularly residents of northern Gaza, on the verge of starvation.

The Israeli war has pushed 85% of Gaza’s population into internal displacement amid acute shortages of food, clean water, and medicine, while 60% of the enclave's infrastructure has been damaged or destroyed, according to the UN.

Israel stands accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice. An interim ruling in January ordered Tel Aviv to stop genocidal acts and take measures to guarantee that humanitarian assistance is provided to civilians in Gaza.

*Writing by Mohammad Sio in Ankara