UAE reaches deal with Israel on Gaza aid delivery
United Nations said the 93 aid trucks had been held up. (AFP pic)
DUBAI : The United Arab Emirates has reached an agreement with Israel to allow the delivery of 'urgent humanitarian aid' to the besieged Gaza Strip, according to a statement released on Wednesday on Emirati state media.
Israel has come under massive international pressure to abandon its intensified military campaign in Gaza and to allow aid into the territory, where humanitarian agencies say a total blockade has sparked critical food and medicine shortages.
Israel said 93 aid trucks had entered Gaza from Israel on Tuesday but the United Nations said the aid had been held up.
Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed, the UAE deputy prime minister and foreign minister, 'held a phone call with Gideon Saar, minister of foreign affairs of Israel, which led to an agreement to allow the delivery of urgent humanitarian aid from the UAE,' the statement on official news agency WAM said.
'The aid will address the food needs of approximately 15,000 civilians in the Gaza Strip in the initial phase,' it said.
The initiative will provide 'essential supplies to support the operation of bakeries in the Strip, as well as critical items for infant care, while ensuring a continuous supply to meet the ongoing needs of civilians,' the statement added.
AFP has reached out to the Israeli authorities for comment.
It was not immediately clear when the UAE's aid would be sent to Gaza, or when it would be distributed.
'Furthermore, the two sides discussed regional and international efforts to resume the humanitarian truce, achieve a ceasefire and the release of hostages,' WAM said.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said this week it was necessary for Israel to prevent famine in Gaza for 'practical and diplomatic reasons', after his government announced it would allow limited aid in.
In 2020, the UAE normalised ties with Israel as part of the US-brokered Abraham Accords under US President Donald Trump's first administration, which also saw Israel establish diplomatic ties with Bahrain and Morocco.
Abu Dhabi also has close ties to Israel's top ally the US, with Trump visiting the Emirati capital as part of his Gulf tour last week.
The Israeli army stepped up its offensive in Gaza at the weekend, vowing to defeat Hamas, whose unprecedented Oct 7, 2023 attack on Israel triggered the war.
The health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza said Tuesday at least 3,427 people have been killed since Israel resumed strikes on March 18, taking the war's overall toll to 53,573.
The Hamas attack in Oct 2023 resulted in the deaths of 1,218 people in Israel, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official figures.
The UAE has sent aid to Gaza earlier in the war, and also treated patients from the territory in the Emirates.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Malay Mail
2 hours ago
- Malay Mail
‘Society in one place': Saudis embrace metro life as decades-old social divisions start to fade
RIYADH, June 4 — For decades, civil servant Zayed al-Ghamdi's social circles in Saudi Arabia were more than predictable, bound by routine and kinship in a country where societal divisions have rarely been challenged. Then came the metro. A decade after breaking ground, Riyadh's gleaming new metro opened in December, offering the capital's eight million residents an alternative to roads chronically clogged by its two million cars. A quicker commute is not the only difference: for the first time, the wealthy are sharing journeys with the less well off, and Saudi nationals are mixing with the large expat population, from white-collar workers to labourers. 'For 40 years, I was confined to my car or restaurants with my father and brothers, then with my wife and children,' Ghamdi, a 42-year-old civil servant working in downtown Riyadh, told AFP. 'I didn't mix or talk to anyone except those I knew or who resembled me. 'Now, things have changed. You feel that society, with all its classes, is in one place,' he added while speeding along the blue line, which connects working-class areas in the south with the downtown business district and affluent northern neighbourhoods. With its eye-watering oil riches, intricate tribal networks and large numbers of foreign workers, Saudi society has long been divided by rigid class structures. But on the metro, those divisions are more porous. Metro carriages are frequently crowded with labourers, university students, government employees and business executives wearing expensive suits. 'I can now discuss general topics with strangers and even get to know new things and cultures up close,' said 56-year-old engineer Nasser Al-Qahtani, pointing to a young Saudi holding a skateboard. 'Family and friends only' While the metro has done little to clear Riyadh's perennially gridlocked streets, its opening has been 'a major social and psychological event', said sociologist Mohammed Al-Hamza. 'The metro has shifted the mindset of Saudi society. It has made people come closer together,' he said. 'The culture in Saudi Arabia is one of family and friends only, and there is reluctance to get to know new people.' Along with chipping away at class divisions, the system is saving commuters time and money, to the delight of many. 'I used to get to work in over an hour and a half, exhausted and stressed due to traffic,' said Ghamdi, adding that he had hardly used his prized SUV for months. 'Now I arrive relaxed and without stress,' he added. Prices range from just four riyals (US$1) for a limited one-day pass to 140 riyals for a month. As in other countries in the Middle East and beyond, the metro offers family carriages reserved for women, children and couples. They afford women a safe and socially acceptable way to use the network to travel to work or study. For those willing to pay an extra 10 riyals per day, first-class compartments also offer a reprieve from the busy single-male carriages. For law student Hadeel Waleed, 20, the metro has been a game-changer, cutting her trip from the southern suburbs to Princess Nourah University from three to four hours to one hour or less. 'Now I arrive home with energy for my family and studying,' she told AFP. 'No one expected this usage' The project is one of many major infrastructure initiatives under 'Vision 2030' – the reform programme overseen by the kingdom's de facto ruler, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. With six lines spanning about 176 kilometres (109 miles) of track, the network serves 85 stations, including stops at all terminals of Riyadh international airport. There had been fears among city officials that the huge project could prove a white elephant, with few Saudis deigning to use it. A bus network developed by the city struggled to gain traction as Saudis remained committed to their cars, especially during the hot summer months when temperatures hit 50 degrees Celsius (122 degrees Fahrenheit). 'Honestly, for 10 years, the question was: 'Who will use the metro?'' a senior official who helps operate the system told AFP on condition of anonymity. 'No one ever expected the current level of usage or even the financial returns,' he added. The Royal Commission for Riyadh did not respond to AFP's enquiries about daily ridership but the official suggested the figure was likely in the tens of thousands if not more. Authorities are already hoping to expand the network, with a seventh line under development linking Riyadh to several new projects on the capital's outskirts. For Muneer, a 28-year-old government employee, the metro is a welcome addition to a city undergoing rapid change. 'It makes life easier,' he said. — AFP
The Sun
2 hours ago
- The Sun
BBC defends Gaza coverage after White House criticism
LONDON: The BBC Wednesday defended its reporting of an incident in which Palestinians were killed near a Gaza aid centre, after the White House accused the broadcaster of taking 'the word of Hamas'. Gaza's civil defence agency said Israeli gunfire killed at least 31 people on Sunday near the US-backed aid centre. The Israeli military, however, denied its troops had fired on civilians in or around the centre, and both it and the aid centre's administrator accused Hamas of sowing false rumours. Responding to a question about the incident, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said on Tuesday the BBC had to 'correct and take down' its story about the incident. 'The administration is aware of those reports and we are currently looking into the veracity of them because, unfortunately, unlike some in the media, we don't take the word of Hamas with total truth,' she said. 'We like to look into it when they speak, unlike the BBC, who had multiple headlines,' she said, citing stories that gave different death tolls. 'And then, oh, wait, they had to correct and take down their entire story, saying 'We reviewed the footage and couldn't find any evidence of anything',' she added. But the BBC said the White House claims were not accurate and that it had not removed its story. 'The claim the BBC took down a story after reviewing footage is completely wrong. We did not remove any story and we stand by our journalism,' it said in a statement. It said headlines giving varying death tolls were 'totally normal' journalistic practice due to the story being 'updated throughout the day with the latest fatality figures as they came in from various sources'. It said the death tolls were always 'clearly attributed, from the first figure of 15 from medics, through the 31 killed from the Hamas-run health ministry to the final Red Cross statement of 'at least 21'', it added. The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) said its field hospital in Rafah received 179 people, including 21 pronounced dead on arrival. Leavitt also criticised the Washington Post for its reporting of the incident. The Post deleted one article over sourcing issues 'because it and early versions of the article didn't meet Post fairness standards'. 'The article and headline were updated on Sunday evening making it clear that there was no consensus about who was responsible.' The BBC has previously faced criticism of its coverage of the Israel-Hamas conflict. In February, it apologised and admitted 'serious flaws' over a documentary -- 'Gaza: How To Survive A Warzone' -- after it emerged its 13-year-old narrator was the son of a senior Hamas figure.
Malay Mail
3 hours ago
- Malay Mail
‘No business with a genocidal govt': Spain halts €287m missile purchase from Israeli firm Rafael
'No business with a genocidal govt': Spain halts €287m missile purchase from Israeli firm Rafael MADRID, June 4 — Spain, which has strongly criticised Israel's offensive in Gaza, has cancelled a contract to buy 168 firing posts and 1,680 anti-tank missiles from Israeli defence company Rafael, Spanish media reported Wednesday. The deal was worth 287.5 million euros (US$327 million), according to top-selling daily Spanish newspaper El País, which cited unnamed government sources. The equipment was to be manufactured in Spain under licence from Rafael. Spanish defence ministry sources told AFP that the government 'has begun a process to revoke licences of Israeli origin' and was working to redirect its procurement programmes 'with the goal of achieving greater technological independence and autonomy'. Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez's criticisms of the offensive in Gaza infuriated Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government last year by recognising a Palestinian state. In late April, Spain cancelled a contract to buy bullets from another Israeli company, IMI Systems, following pressure from the Socialist-led government's far-left coalition partner Sumar – a move swiftly condemned by Israel. Labour Minister Yolanda Diaz, the founder of Sumar, said at the time that Spain could not engage in 'business with a genocidal government... that is massacring the Palestinian people'. Sanchez's government said it halted weapons transactions with Israel after the start of the war following Hamas's attack on Israel on October 7, 2023. But according to Centre Delas, a Barcelona-based think tank specialising in security and defence, the government has granted 46 contracts worth more than 1 billion euros to Israeli companies based on data published on a public tenders platform. — AFP
