On March 16th, a US charity reported that its team in the Gaza Strip completed the unpacking of the initial maritime aid delivery to the constrained region. As per a release from World Central Kitchen, the shipment was offloaded and readied for dispersal within Gaza.
In particular, World Central Kitchen’s team in Gaza offloaded almost 200 tons of desperately needed food that arrived on their first maritime aid shipment to the region. Carried on the Open Arms vessel, the cargo is part of Operation Safeena, their effort to bring as much aid as possible to Palestinians by sea.
We have provided more than 37 million meals to families in war-torn Gaza by land, sea, and air since first responding to the conflict. The opening of this maritime corridor allows us to provide millions more meals.
..World Central Kitchen’s team stated.
Then Open Arms boat that transported the aid is back in Cyprus and its crew rejoined their team as they prepare to dispatch their next vessel with more food. This was the first boat to reach Gaza in almost two decades.
This first maritime shipment of food, including rice, flour, legumes, canned vegetables, and proteins, was organized alongside the United Arab Emirates and Cyprus. WCK teams built the jetty used to offload the aid so it can reach communities facing starvation as soon as possible.
As explained, preparations are underway in Cyprus to dispatch a second boat carrying hundreds more tons of aid, along with heavy machinery to expedite the offloading process. The second vessel will be accompanied by a support boat that will assist with offloading.
I want us to build a highway of constantly flowing aid on the sea as just one more access point into Gaza that is so desperately needed.
…said WCK CEO Erin Gore, who was recently on the ground in Cyprus.
WCK’s aid boat returned to Cyprus after delivering our first maritime humanitarian shipment to Gaza. The @openarms_fund crew rejoins our team as we prepare to dispatch our next vessel with more food. This was the first boat to reach Gaza in almost two decades.#ChefsForThePeople pic.twitter.com/bldzz1cpg2
— World Central Kitchen (@WCKitchen) March 17, 2024
