UK airdrops food aid into Gaza for first time
The Royal Air Force parachuted more than 10 tonnes of aid, including water, rice, cooking oil, flour, tinned goods and baby formula to Gaza civilians on Monday
The UK has airdropped food supplies into Gaza for the first time as the Defence Secretary urged Israel to allow more aid into the war-torn territory.
The Royal Air Force parachuted more than 10 tonnes of aid, including water, rice, cooking oil, flour, tinned goods and baby formula to Gaza civilians on Monday.
An RAF A400M aircraft flew from Amman to drop the supplies along Gaza’s northern coastline as part of a Jordanian-led international aid mission, according to the Ministry of Defence.
Grant Shapps authorised the airdrop following an assessed reduction in threat to the military mission and risk to civilians.
The Defence Secretary said: “The UK has already tripled our aid budget to Gaza, but we want to go further in order to reduce human suffering. Today’s airdrop has provided a further way to deliver humanitarian support and I thank the RAF personnel involved in this essential mission, as well as our Jordanian partners for their leadership.
“The hell that was unleashed by the October 7 Hamas attack has led to wide-scale innocent loss of life. The UK’s goal is to use every route possible to deliver life-saving aid, whether that is by road, air or new routes via the sea.
“We also continue to call on Israel to provide port access and open more land crossings in order to increase incoming aid deliveries to Gaza.”
The aid delivery came on the day the UK backed a United Nations Security Council call for a ceasefire in Gaza during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.
Downing Street said the Security Council resolution – the first calling for a halt to the fighting – sent a clear message that the hostages held by Hamas should be released and aid should be allowed in to Gaza.
Amid warnings of an imminent famine in the war-torn Gaza Strip, the airdrop followed recent land deliveries of 2,000 tonnes of UK food aid to feed more than 275,000 people in the territory.
Monday’s delivery was the UK’s first ever mission delivering humanitarian aid by parachute, though Britain has previously supported international airdrops, providing some 600 parachutes at the request of Jordan and Bahrain.
Thank you for helping to make Jewish News the leading source of news and opinion for the UK Jewish community. Today we're asking for your invaluable help to continue putting our community first in everything we do.
For as little as £5 a month you can help sustain the vital work we do in celebrating and standing up for Jewish life in Britain.
Jewish News holds our community together and keeps us connected. Like a synagogue, it’s where people turn to feel part of something bigger. It also proudly shows the rest of Britain the vibrancy and rich culture of modern Jewish life.
You can make a quick and easy one-off or monthly contribution of £5, £10, £20 or any other sum you’re comfortable with.
100% of your donation will help us continue celebrating our community, in all its dynamic diversity...
Engaging
Being a community platform means so much more than producing a newspaper and website. One of our proudest roles is media partnering with our invaluable charities to amplify the outstanding work they do to help us all.
Celebrating
There’s no shortage of oys in the world but Jewish News takes every opportunity to celebrate the joys too, through projects like Night of Heroes, 40 Under 40 and other compelling countdowns that make the community kvell with pride.
Pioneering
In the first collaboration between media outlets from different faiths, Jewish News worked with British Muslim TV and Church Times to produce a list of young activists leading the way on interfaith understanding.
Campaigning
Royal Mail issued a stamp honouring Holocaust hero Sir Nicholas Winton after a Jewish News campaign attracted more than 100,000 backers. Jewish Newsalso produces special editions of the paper highlighting pressing issues including mental health and Holocaust remembrance.
Easy access
In an age when news is readily accessible, Jewish News provides high-quality content free online and offline, removing any financial barriers to connecting people.
Voice of our community to wider society
The Jewish News team regularly appears on TV, radio and on the pages of the national press to comment on stories about the Jewish community. Easy access to the paper on the streets of London also means Jewish News provides an invaluable window into the community for the country at large.
We hope you agree all this is worth preserving.
