Two air and space army planes have transported 26 tonnes of food destined for the Gazan population and dropped in the northern part of the Strip.
An Air Force plane launches Spanish humanitarian aid to the people of Gaza.An Air Force plane launches Spanish humanitarian aid to the people of Gaza.
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Humanitarian aid sent from Spain is already in Gaza
The humanitarian aid sent from Spain is already in Gaza following the joint operation by the Ministry of Defence and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, European Union and Cooperation, which is part of Spain’s commitment to the civilian population, who are suffering the consequences of the conflict unleashed after the Hamas terrorist attack on 7 October.
This morning saw the launch of the 26 tonnes of humanitarian aid, made up of more than 11,000 food rations, after two A400 Air Force and Space planes took off from the Zaragoza Air Base yesterday, Tuesday 26 March, with the aid material. The operation has been coordinated with the Jordanian authorities and is co-financed by the European Union. Around 40 military personnel from the Operations Command, the JFAC (Joint Air Command Centre), the EADA (Air Deployment Support Squadron) and the JMOVA (Air Mobility Headquarters) took part in the operation.
Spain insists on the opening of land crossings as an indispensable measure to avoid a famine situation in the Gaza Strip. The massive entry of humanitarian aid by road is the most effective way to respond to this humanitarian emergency; however, the difficulties of access at this time make it advisable to explore all avenues to get aid to the civilian population, including by air, as other countries such as France, Germany and the United States are doing.
Up to 1.1 million people in Gaza face catastrophic levels of food insecurity according to the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC), a tool that classifies the severity of this challenge. The IPC also predicts worsening malnutrition rates unless aid is scaled up and reaches the most vulnerable and hard-to-reach populations. Meanwhile, humanitarian access to the population is insufficient to curb the famine emergency and lack of access to basic services such as water and sanitation, health, shelter, etc.
Spain’s commitment
At least 31,998 Palestinians have died in the Gaza Strip since the conflict began on 7 October. Of these, nearly 70% are women and children. Another 74,188 people are estimated to have been injured in the same period.
Spain’s commitment to humanitarian aid to Palestinian refugees is solid and permanent. In 2023, Spain tripled its support to Palestine over the previous year, to more than €50 million in humanitarian and cooperation funds. Of this total, 19.5 million was earmarked to fund the work of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA).
In 2024, Spain has reaffirmed its commitment to support UNRWA’s humanitarian response in Palestine, as well as the very existence of the organisation, which provides essential services to 6 million Palestinian refugees not only in Gaza and the West Bank, but also in Lebanon, Jordan and Syria, enabling the agency to maintain its activities in the short term with a contribution of at least 23.5 million euros.