Despite promises of increased aid, Gaza faces severe shortages as US and aid organizations cite inadequate delivery amidst ongoing conflict

Samantha Power, the head of the US Agency for International Development (USAID), has officially confirmed that parts of Gaza are now experiencing famine. This grim acknowledgement comes amidst continuous struggles to get promised aid into the area, despite prior commitments from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to US President Joe Biden to increase humanitarian aid flows.

A week ago, Netanyahu assured Biden of a significant boost in aid deliveries to Gaza, a promise that has visibly faltered according to on-ground reports from aid workers. The claims of increased truck crossings into Gaza by Israel have been contradicted by United Nations records, which show a stark discrepancy in numbers and a noticeable decline in recent days.

Jeremy Konyndyk, a former senior official in the Biden administration and now president of Refugees International, expressed scepticism about the progress, stating, “Very little has actually changed.” He pointed out that the promised operational changes, including the opening of Ashdod port and a new border crossing at Erez or another location, have not been effectively implemented. The delay was highlighted when the Israeli defence minister, Yoav Gallant, only recently announced the commencement of construction on a new crossing, with no specified completion date.

In a further complication, two other initiatives by Israel to facilitate aid—a coordination centre and a new security screening centre for aid trucks—remain unfinished. These centres are meant to ensure that aid missions are not targeted, as occurred on April 1 when a convoy from the World Central Kitchen was bombed, resulting in the deaths of seven aid workers.

The plight in Gaza is exacerbated by logistical challenges within the territory itself. USAID’s Power pointed out during a congressional testimony that the lack of sufficient trucks and drivers in Gaza is a major bottleneck. Many truck owners, particularly Egyptian hauliers, are hesitant to send their vehicles into Gaza for fear of attacks or looting by desperate locals. This shortage is critical as the delivery system requires goods to be transferred to different trucks once inside Gaza for distribution.

Despite Israel’s claim that daily truck passages have doubled since the Biden-Netanyahu call, the numbers reported by the UN’s Relief and Works Agency (Unrwa) suggest a sharp fall after an initial increase. This mismatch in data and the ongoing conflict have left many in Gaza without essential supplies, with the north of the strip suffering the most.

As international attention focuses on Gaza’s dire situation, the effectiveness of Israel’s aid mechanisms and the overall safety of aid operations remain in question. The challenges are complex, involving both logistical hurdles within Gaza and the broader geopolitical conflicts that impact the region.