Earlier yesterday, the UK and the European Commission announced plans to create a maritime corridor to help aid reach Gaza.
The project will be carried out with the help of several other countries, and comes after the US said it would build a temporary port in the besieged region to help aid efforts.
Here’s what we know about the plans so far:
Who’s involved?
- European Commission
- Germany
- Greece
- Italy
- Netherlands
- Cyprus
- United Arab Emirates
- UK
- US
What is it aiming to do?
The corridor will aim to deliver “much-needed additional amounts of humanitarian assistance by sea”, the countries announced in a joint statement.
“The humanitarian situation in Gaza is dire, with innocent Palestinian families and children desperate for basic necessities,” it added.
“This maritime corridor can – and must – be part of a sustained effort to increase the flow of humanitarian aid and commercial commodities into Gaza through all possible routes.”
How will it work?
While we don’t know the specifics of the route or how it will operate, we do know Cyprus will be responsible for establishing the mechanism for securely shipping the aid from its land to Gaza via the sea.
The model will work in coordination with the UN’s senior humanitarian and reconstruction coordinator for Gaza Sigrid Kaag.
He has been charged with “facilitating, coordinating, monitoring, and verifying the flow of aid” into the besieged region, the statement said.
“The dedicated efforts of the UAE to mobilize support for the Initiative will result in the initial shipment of food by sea to the people of Gaza,” it added.
What happens next?
The countries said Cyprus would soon convene senior officials to discuss how to accelerate the maritime channel, “supplementing land and air routes, including from Egypt and Jordan”.
“The delivery of humanitarian assistance directly to Gaza by sea will be complex, and our nations will continue to assess and adjust our efforts to ensure we deliver aid as effectively as possible,” they added.
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