Israel says 93 UN aid trucks entered Gaza on Tuesday

Israel said 93 UN aid trucks entered war-ravaged Gaza on Tuesday, a day after the UN announced it had been cleared to send supplies for the first time since Israel imposed a total blockade on March 2.

COGAT, the Israeli defence ministry body that oversees civil affairs in the Palestinian territories, said "93 UN trucks carrying humanitarian aid, including flour for bakeries, food for babies, medical equipment and pharmaceutical drugs were transferred today (Tuesday) via the Kerem Shalom Crossing into the Gaza Strip".

The announcement came amid international outcry over the dire humanitarian situation in the Palestinian territory, and as European countries ramped up pressure on Israel to abandon an intensified campaign and let more aid in.

A spokesman said on Tuesday that the UN had received permission to send "around 100" trucks of aid into Gaza after nine were authorised the day before.

UN humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher said that the trucks allowed in on Monday were "a drop in the ocean of what is urgently needed".

The spokesman for UN chief Antonio Guterres said that "a few dozens" were allowed in on Tuesday, but spoke of difficulties receiving deliveries.

"Today, one of our teams waited several hours for the Israeli green light to... collect the nutrition supplies. Unfortunately, they were not able to bring those supplies into our warehouse," Stephane Dujarric said.

"So just to make it clear, while more supplies have come into the Gaza Strip, we have not been able to secure the arrival of those supplies into our warehouses and delivery points." 

The Israeli army stepped up its offensive at the weekend, vowing to defeat Gaza rulers Hamas, whose October 7, 2023 attack on Israel triggered the war.

'Untenable'

The European Union on Tuesday agreed to review its cooperation deal with Israel over alleged human rights abuses in Gaza, the bloc's top diplomat Kaja Kallas said.

Kallas said Brussels was acting after "a strong majority" of its 27 member states backed the move, in a meeting of EU foreign ministers, in a bid to pressure Israel.

"What it tells is that the countries see that the situation in Gaza is untenable, and what we want is to really help the people, and what we want is to unblock the humanitarian aid so that it will reach the people," Kallas told journalists.

Momentum to re-examine the EU-Israel Association Agreement, which forms the basis for trade ties between the two sides, has grown since Israel restarted its offensive in Gaza after a ceasefire expired. 

Kallas said the aid trucks Israel allowed into Gaza on Tuesday was a "drop in the ocean" compared to suffering faced by the people inside the strip.

The Netherlands spearheaded the latest push over a year after two staunch backers of the Palestinian cause, Spain and Ireland, failed to convince the bloc to suspend the accord.

Diplomats said 17 EU states pressed for review at the Brussels meeting under Article two of the agreement that calls for a respect for human rights.

Belgium's foreign minister Maxime Prevot said he had "no doubt" about the violation of rights in Gaza, and the review could lead to the suspension of the entire deal. 

The EU has struggled to have an impact on the conflict as there are long-standing divisions within the bloc between countries who back Israel and those considered more pro-Palestinian.  

In a sign of the splits, in a separate move, Hungary blocked imposing more sanctions on Israeli settlers in the West Bank.