The US made its first airdrop of humanitarian aid in Gaza on Saturday afternoon, when three Air Force cargo planes delivered 66 pallets by parachute, a total of 38,000 ready-to-eat meals. US Central Command said the mission was carried out with Jordan's air force, the New York Times reports. The bundles were dropped on the beach along the Mediterranean coast, per the AP, a spot the statement said was chosen for its civilian access. The military said the drops, which President Biden announced on Friday in response to the humanitarian crisis, "are part of a sustained effort to get more aid into Gaza, including by expanding the flow of aid through land corridors and routes."
Humanitarian aid veterans criticized the drops as ineffective, costly, dangerous, and an option of last resort. Oxfam, an international group, does not support the deliveries, per the Washington Post. The International Rescue Committee said, "Airdrops are not the solution to relieve this suffering, and distract time and effort from proven solutions to help at scale." The head of a UN agency for Palestinian affairs said on Thursday that opening the crossings into Gaza and having truck convoys bring in supplies, including medical aid, would be more productive. Jordan dropped 33 tons of medical supplies, food, and other items in Gaza on Thursday, for example; that's a lot but not close to enough to sustain the population of 2 million.
The US drop included no water or medical aid, per CNN. An American official told Axios more airdrops should follow soon, but the weather forecast for Gaza on Sunday predicts poor conditions. "The fact that today's airdrop was successful is an important test case to show that we can do this again in the coming days and weeks successfully," a White House official told reporters in a call. (More Israel-Hamas war stories.)
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