More than 2,400 aid trucks entered the Gaza Struggle from the ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas This came about, according to United Nations officials, as attention shifted to rebuilding the enclave destroyed during 15 months of intense Israeli bombing.
During the conflict, aid flows to the closed enclave were severely restricted.
As the ceasefire entered its fourth day on Wednesday, video from Reuters showed convoys of trucks carrying humanitarian aid entering Rafah, in southern Gaza. In one, Palestinians were seen running after the trucks on the city's battered roads as they scrambled to pick up purple plastic aid bags that had fallen off. In another, they were seen picking up plastic water bottles from the ground, flanked by the ruins of damaged buildings.
The UN previously estimated that about 60% of Gaza's infrastructure was destroyed, including schools and hospitals. There was a major ban on the delivery of aid and fuel during the conflict, prompting international criticism of Israel.
More than 47,000 people have been killed in Israeli bombing during the conflict, according to local health officials. Meanwhile, about 90% of Gaza's population – nearly 1.9 million people – have been displaced from their homes and forced to live in tent camps and other makeshift shelters, according to the The United Nations.
Young men pass a truck full of aid in Rafah, southern Gaza.
Under the ceasefire agreementIsraeli officials must allow at least 600 aid shipments, including 50 carrying fuel, into Gaza each day during the initial six weeks. Half of these trucks will be directed to northern Gaza, where experts had warned of impending famine.
A senior UN official told Reuters Wednesday that there did not seem to be any law and order issues so far in ensuring the flow of aid into the besieged area. Looters and criminal gangs have raided aid trucks during the conflict, which was fueled by Hamas' October 7, 2023, terror attack that killed 1,200 and saw around 250 taken hostage.
The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said that the support would extend to providing food aid and health care, including opening bakeries, restocking hospitals, repairing water networks and shelters, and reuniting families.
In the al-Dahra neighborhood of central Khan Younis, NBC News captured video of uniformed officers from the al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas, stationed on the streets to monitor trucks and ensure the delivery of aid. delivered safely into the city on Monday.
A member of the al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas, directs aid as it arrives in Khan Younis, southern Gaza.
Abdul Wahab Abdul Raouf Samour, 40, a police officer, was sent to monitor the streets and facilitate the traffic across the ocean.
“We were told by the Ministry of the Interior to wear military uniforms and military suits and go straight to work,” he told the NBC News team on Monday, adding that Palestinian officials had given instructions for those deployed to ensure security measures were in place to prevent fires.
“As you can see, we are facilitating the movement of traffic in the cities, and, God willing, we hope to serve our people more than this,” he said.
Over the course of the siege, video captured by NBC News showed scenes of buildings covered in ash and streets lined with broken debris from homes and shops. Other drone footage captured Gaza before and after the 15-month war, showing the destruction of its cities.
A crowd gathers behind an aid truck as it enters Rafah, southern Gaza, on Wednesday.
But even the promise of a ceasefire could not protect some Palestinians in Gaza who wanted to rebuild their lives as Israeli airstrikes continued in Khan Younis on Monday.
When Ahmed Qudra, 35, left his home to buy chicken wings for his seven children from the market, he was killed by an Israeli missile that hit a security forces vehicle and killed four security officers. The attack also claimed the lives of three of Qudra's children and injured two others.
“We went to bed believing that the break started at 8:30. How would we know things had changed? How would we have known that our happiness would turn into devastation?” Hanan, Qudra's wife, told the NBC News ground crew through tears.
“On Friday, we asked him to bring us chicken wings. He said yes. Now he's gone,” said Adel, a 12-year-old son, who saw his father and siblings killed.
This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
