Turkish Red Crescent restarts food distribution in Gaza

By Merve Berker

ANKARA (AA) – The Turkish Red Crescent has restarted distributing food at its soup kitchen in Gaza, now partially repaired from damage caused by Israeli attacks, for 500 families every day, it said on Monday.

“The Red Crescent soup kitchen in Gaza has been partially repaired after the damage it sustained in Israeli attacks and has started to produce hot meals again,” the humanitarian aid agency said in a statement.

“The Red Crescent serves hot meals for 500 families from the soup kitchen in Gaza every day,” it added.

“In Gaza, where resources have reached the point of exhaustion, the Turkish Red Crescent continues its relief efforts with its local staff and volunteers,” the agency emphasized, noting that it “provides food support to civilians affected by the war with its local staff inside Gaza, and is also continuing its contacts for the passage of aid through Egypt's Rafah Border Crossing.”

The aid group underlined that it “will also provide emergency medical supplies and generator support to the region with aircraft to be sent from Türkiye” along with meeting “the rising needs of civilians inside Gaza both with humanitarian aid supplies it delivers to Egypt and with supplies it will procure from the region.”

Israel has continued bombardment of the Gaza Strip since an Oct. 7 offensive by Hamas and has strongly hinted at launching a ground offensive soon.

A second convoy of relief trucks enter the strip on Sunday, one day after 20 trucks entered the area, the first aid shipments allowed in since Israel imposed a complete siege.

Before the start of the current conflict, hundreds of aid trucks would enter each day to serve Gaza’s population of over 2 million.

At least 5,087 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli attacks on Gaza, while more than 1,400 people have been killed in Israel.

There is an urgent need of fuel, food, and water in the besieged enclave, according to the UN agency for Palestinian refugees UNRWA.​​​​​​​