By Yasemin Kalyoncuoglu
The seventh Turkish Red Crescent ship carrying humanitarian aid for the besieged Gaza Strip arrived on Sunday at Egypt's Port of El-Arish.
The much-needed aid materials will enter Gaza through Egypt, at the southern Rafah Border Gate.
The ship has a cargo of over 2,700 tons including food parcels containing ready-to-eat meals, water, food packages, flour, clothing, hygiene kits, materials for shelter such as tents, sleeping bags, and blankets, medical equipment, and baby supplies.
Seeking to ensure that the aid trucks reach the needy recipients quickly, the Turkish Red Crescent is working in coordination with both the Egyptian Red Crescent and the Palestinian Red Crescent.
In addition to distributing food packages within Gaza, the Turkish Red Crescent continues to provide hot meals to 5,000 people daily by running a soup kitchen in the city of Rafah, southern Gaza.
Starting today, meals will be distributed as iftar and suhoor, the sunup and sundown meals for the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, in which people fast during the daylight hours, health permitting.
The Gaza Strip has been under a five-month relentless offensive by Israel, including a crippling blockade that does not let in enough aid for the enclave’s population of over 2 million, leaving the Palestinians there vulnerable to famine and disease. Some 32,000 people have been killed.