Officials from the Hamas-run Health Ministry in Gaza and an eyewitness told CBS News that five people were killed Friday by an air aid package when at least one parachute failed to deploy properly and a package fell on them. The people were in the Beach refugee camp in northern Gaza, and the incident occurred at approximately 11:30 a.m. local time (4:30 a.m. eastern).
CBS News was told that two boys were among the five dead and that 11 others were injured in the incident. The exact ages of the victims were not known, but it was said that the ages of the injured ranged between 30 and 50 years.
The United States, Jordan, Egypt, France, the Netherlands, and Belgium Dropping aid on Gaza on Friday in an attempt to deliver supplies, including much-needed food, to residents amid the chaos And the worsening humanitarian crisis there. A US defense official told CBS News that an initial review indicated that the US airdrop was not responsible for the deaths on the ground, but said further investigation was needed.
A video posted on social media showed a large group of aid packages suspended from parachutes drifting in the sky but appearing to get tangled before one of them, with its chute opened but not fully opened, fell much more quickly than the rest.
International relief agencies and others have criticized the airdrops as woefully inadequate to meet the needs of Gaza's population.
The United Nations has warned of widespread famine among Gaza's population of about 2.3 million people, and Martin Griffiths, the world organization's chief humanitarian aid coordinator, said on Friday in a post on social media marking the six-month anniversary of the war in Gaza, that the air drops It was a “last resort.” “
“All those concerned with the situation in Gaza must put pressure on the Israeli government to allow unimpeded humanitarian access to the territories and not obstruct convoys,” said European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell. He said ThursdayHe described the airdrops as “good but not enough.”
US officials acknowledged to CBS News that the airdrops are not enough to meet the massive needs in Gaza. They say they are a statement that the world is not standing idly by while famine unfolds.
The airdrops took place on Friday, one day after the president Biden announced The US military will build a temporary dock on the Mediterranean coast of Gaza capable of receiving shipments of humanitarian aid, including food, water, medicine, and temporary shelters, to increase the flow of these goods into the Strip.
Two US officials told CBS News that the current plan is for the pier to be installed by the US Army's 7th Transportation Brigade, headquartered at Ft. Story, Virginia. The ships required to do the work were still docked in Virginia as of Friday, and officials explained that it would take weeks before the project was up and running.
Lior Hayat, spokesman for the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs He said in a statement On Friday, Israel welcomed the plan, adding that it would “allow for increased humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip, after conducting security checks in accordance with Israeli standards.”
Hayat said that Israel “will continue the fight against Hamas – the organization that calls for the destruction of the State of Israel and which carried out the October 7 massacre – until it is eliminated and all hostages are returned,” while continuing to facilitate the provision of hostages. Humanitarian aid in Gaza “in accordance with the rules of war and in coordination with the United States and our allies around the world.”
