UPDATE - Türkiye sends more aid supplies to Gaza via military aircraft

UPDATES WITH NEW DETAILS; CHANGES IN HEADLINE, DECK AND BODY

By Alperen Aktas and Merve Berker

ISTANBUL / Türkiye has sent more aid supplies to Gaza via a military aircraft, the National Defense Ministry said on Monday, a day after a presidential plane carrying medical supplies reached Egypt.

“The first aircraft belonging to our Air Force, carrying aid packages prepared for Gaza and mostly containing medical supplies, departed from our 11th Air Transport Main Base Command in Ankara Etimesgut to Egypt,” the ministry said on X.

“The preparatory activities of our other aircraft that will deliver aid to the region are continuing,” the statement added.

"We continue to extend our helping hand to Gaza. We have begun loading aid packages, mostly containing medical supplies," the ministry said earlier.

A Turkish presidential aircraft, loaded with medicines and medical supplies destined for the Gaza Strip, departed from Ankara to Egypt’s capital Cairo on Sunday. A group of 20 expert healthcare professionals were also on board the plane.​

Israel has continued bombardment of the Gaza Strip since the Oct. 7 offensive by Hamas, and is expected to launch a ground offensive.

A second convoy of relief trucks entered the Gaza Strip on Sunday, a day after 20 trucks entered the area, the first aid shipment since Israel imposed a complete siege. Both shipments entered from Egypt through the Rafah crossing, the sole route into Gaza not controlled by Israel.