Cairo/Gaza, Jan 19 (IANS) The first humanitarian aid trucks entered Gaza from Egypt on Sunday as the Israel-Hamas ceasefire started taking effect, Palestinian sources confirmed.
The sources told Xinhua news agency that the first humanitarian aid entered the coastal enclave through the border crossing of Kerem Shalom in the southern of Gaza.
Earlier in the day, the Egyptian state-run Nile TV showed footage of dozens of aid trucks crossing the Egyptian side of Rafah crossing to be inspected by Israeli authorities before crossing the Palestinian side to enter Gaza.
Delegations from mediators Qatar and the United States, in addition to others from Palestine and Israel, arrived in Cairo on Sunday to monitor the implementation of the Israel-Hamas ceasefire agreement, added the TV reports.
Based on the ceasefire agreement, about 600 trucks loaded with humanitarian aid, including 50 fuel trucks, would enter Gaza every day to ease the humanitarian crises in Gaza.
The 42-day first stage of the ceasefire deal, reached on Wednesday through the mediation of Egypt, Qatar, and the United States, started taking effect on Sunday after Hamas provided a list of the three Israeli female captives to be released later in the day, the report noted.
Also, the office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu confirmed that the ceasefire agreement started taking effect.
A day earlier, Al-Ansari announced that the Gaza ceasefire would commence on Sunday, Jan. 19, at 8:30 a.m. local time (0630 GMT) in Gaza.
Israel and Hamas on Wednesday agreed on a Gaza ceasefire-for-hostages deal after intensive mediation by Qatar, Egypt and the U.S.
Earlier, Egypt resumed sending humanitarian aid trucks to the Gaza Strip through the Rafah border crossing between Egypt and the enclave after the recently reached Israel-Hamas ceasefire agreement started taking effect, the Egyptian State TV reported.
Egypt Minister of Health Khaled Abdel Ghaffar and Minister of Social Solidarity Maya Morsy arrived at Arish Airport early Saturday to inspect hospitals’ readiness to receive injured Gazans and monitor final aid delivery arrangements to the Gaza Strip, the Egyptian state news agency reported.
Earlier on Friday evening, the AlQahera News Channel reported that a large number of aid trucks were lined up at the Rafah border crossing, ready to enter Gaza. The trucks are reported to carry tens of thousands of essential food items for Gaza’s residents.
Arish, along with its airport in North Sinai, serves as a hub for receiving and transporting international relief aid into Gaza.
Aid deliveries have been disrupted since May 2024, when Israeli forces occupied the Palestinian side of the Rafah border crossing.
Qatar announced a three-phase ceasefire agreement late Wednesday evening to end more than 15 months of deadly Israeli attacks on the Gaza Strip.
Nearly 47,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children, were killed and more than 110,700 injured in Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza since October 7, 2023, according to local health authorities.
The International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants in November for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.
Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on the enclave.
–IANS
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