150 tons of UK aid, facilitated by Jordan, have entered Gaza where the United Nations [UNICEF] will distribute them to those in need. This aid includes more than 13,000 blankets and 840 family-sized tents

 

In addition, a full field hospital, provided by UK Aid funding to the UK-Med humanitarian medical NGO, is due to arrive in Gaza this week. The facility can be adapted according to needs on the ground and normally includes a pharmacy, triage area, major injuries and resuscitation unit, and maternity care tent. It can be used to treat more than 100 patients a day.

 

Alongside the latest deliveries of aid, the UK Foreign Secretary The Rt Hon Lord Cameron has announced a further £10 million in aid funding for the Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPTs), bringing the total spend to over £100 million this financial year. This funding will support UN agencies on the ground to deliver lifesaving aid and will also provide core relief items, such as tents, for the most vulnerable.

 

Philip Hall, HM Ambassador to Jordan said:

 

The UK is grateful to the Jordanian Armed Forces, the Jordan Hashemite Charity Organisation and officials at the King Hussein Bridge border terminal for facilitating the delivery of this much-needed humanitarian assistance to Gaza. Jordan is doing extraordinary work to support the people of Gaza through its direct assistance, and through its support to the UN and donors trying to get aid to Gaza.

 

British Foreign Secretary Lord Cameron said:

“Too many people in Gaza are suffering. No one should be without basic amenities like shelter and bedding, and everyone deserves the dignity that basic hygiene kits provide. Our largest aid delivery, combined with a new UK funded field hospital, will save lives.

 

“ But an immediate pause in the fighting is the only way to get aid into Gaza in the quantities desperately needed. This will also allow for the safe release of hostages.

 

“ We could then work towards a sustainable, permanent ceasefire, without a return to destruction, fighting or loss of life.”

 

Today’s additional 150 tonnes of UK core relief items for UNICEF will include 840 family tents, 13,440 blankets, almost 3,000 shelter kits, and shelter-fixing kits, 6,000 sleeping mats and more than 3,000 dignity kits to support women and girls.

 

An estimated 3.1 million people are in need of humanitarian assistance in the OPTs, with over half a million at risk from famine.

 

The UK is committed to ensuring aid reaches those who need it most, as Palestinians continue to face a devastating and growing humanitarian crisis in Gaza. The Foreign Secretary has been clear that Israel must increase capacity to safely distribute aid within Gaza. This includes opening a land crossing in the north and issuing more visas to UN staff who are capable of delivering aid when it arrives in Gaza.

 

UK funding has supported the work of partners including the British Red Cross, UNICEF, the UN World Food Programme (WFP), the Jordan Hashemite Charitable Organisation (JHCO) and Egyptian Red Crescent Society (ERCS) to deliver vital supplies.