Waiting for aid: Gaza awaits arrival of humanitarian aid ship amid delays

Report by Toni Mrad, English adaptation by Yasmine Jaroudi

Gaza residents are eagerly anticipating the arrival of aid ships, marking five months since the Israeli war on the territory.

After last week's announcement that a maritime aid corridor between Cyprus and Gaza would be operationalized, the Spanish NGO's vessel, Open Arms, remains anchored on the shores of Larnaca in Cyprus due to undisclosed technical issues.

According to LBCI's sources, the ship is expected to set sail for Gaza in the upcoming hours, a journey estimated to take approximately 15 hours.

It has been reported that the ship was searched in Cyprus in collaboration with Israel and is carrying around 200 tons of food supplies, including rice, flour, lentils, dry beans, tuna, beef, and canned chicken, confirmed by the World Central Kitchen.

In a potentially expedient move to facilitate aid transportation, the Israeli newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth revealed Tel Aviv's intention to purchase a Cypriot port.

Through this port, Israel aims to inspect humanitarian aid ships before they arrive in Gaza and potentially utilize it as an alternative export route should the port of Haifa face any targeting.

However, questions remain about how the aid will be distributed.

The World Central Kitchen informed LBCI that they would undertake this task, mainly after reports emerged that Israel had requested certain Palestinian clans to oversee aid distribution, a proposal rejected by Hamas, denouncing any communication with Israel as treason.