Israel Told UN It Will Reduce Expected Number Of Trucks Into Gaza, UN Spokesperson Says

Israeli authorities have notified the United Nations that the amount of humanitarian trucks expected to be allowed into Gaza will be reduced or delayed due to the limited number of deceased hostages so far released by Hamas, a UN spokesperson said Tuesday.

Olga Cherevko, a spokesperson for the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) in Gaza, was asked by a reporter during a press briefing whether Israeli officials had informed the UN that the expected number of trucks would be delayed or reduced due to the number of hostages so far released.

Trucks carrying humanitarian aid prepared by the Egyptian Red Crescent line up in Al-Arish, Egypt, on Tuesday.Reuters

In response, Cherevko said: “We have received this communication from the Israeli authorities and of course we continue to encourage the parties to adhere to the agreements that have been set out in the ceasefire parameters,” in comments first reported by Reuters.

Reuters first reported Tuesday that, according to a note it saw, Israel told the UN it will only allow 300 aid trucks – half the agreed number – into the Gaza Strip from Wednesday and that no fuel or gas will be allowed into the enclave except for specific needs related to humanitarian infrastructure.

CNN has not been able to independently confirm the figure and has reached out to Israeli authorities, including COGAT, the Israeli agency that controls the entry of aid into the enclave.

Under the agreement brokered by the US, Hamas and its allies were meant to release all of the remaining hostages, alive and dead, within 72 hours of the ceasefire being announced.

However, only four of the 28 deceased hostages were returned to Israel after the 20 living hostages were released yesterday. And, as CNN reported last week, Israel has assessed that Hamas may not be able to find and return all the remaining dead hostages in Gaza.

CNN