France drops 40 tonnes of humanitarian aid in Gaza as crisis worsens

Forty tonnes of humanitarian aid were dropped this Friday to help the residents of Gaza, who are facing severe hunger, French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot said, calling for the Strip to be “flooded with water, food and medicine”.

Speaking to French radio Franceinfo, he highlighted the scale of the humanitarian crisis in the Palestinian enclave. “There’s not a minute left to lose,” Barrot said.

France’s top diplomat acknowledged that this aid was “insufficient” to meet the needs of the population.

On Tuesday, Barrot had mentioned “four flights carrying 10 tonnes of food each”, implying that four rotations would be carried out.

Humanitarian airdrops resumed on Sunday, after the Israeli army announced a pause in the fighting.

The first flights airdropping much-needed aid were carried out by Jordan and the United Arab Emirates.

The UK was the first European country to take part, followed by Germany, Belgium and now France, which have all set up an “air route” via Jordan.

Reopen all access routes, Barrot says

A World Health Organisation report published on Thursday warned of the dramatic famine facing Gaza.

Since the beginning of July, 5,000 children under the age of 5 have been admitted for treatment for acute malnutrition. Sixty-three children have died of starvation.

Barrot described the situation as “absolutely intolerable”.

The French foreign minister also denounced the restrictions imposed by Israel on the entry of humanitarian aid.

He claimed that “52 tonnes (of aid) have been waiting for months just a few kilometres from the Gaza Strip”.

“The Israeli government must now reopen all access routes – air, land and sea – to allow unhindered and massive access of humanitarian aid to the civilian populations who need it so badly”.

At the same time, a rare visit by US envoy Steve Witkoff is scheduled to take place in the Gaza Strip.

He will be inspecting humanitarian aid distribution sites and meeting locals.

The purpose of this mission is to “report back to the president (…) to approve a final plan for the distribution of aid”, according to the White House spokeswoman.