Biden says US will drop humanitarian aid on Gaza

AdminMarch 1, 2024

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WASHINGTON (AP) — A day after more than 100 Palestinians were killed during a chaotic clash with Israeli troops, President Joe Biden said Friday the United States will begin sending humanitarian aid to Gaza.

The president announced the measure after at least 115 Palestinians were killed and more than 750 wounded on Thursday, according to the Gaza health ministry, when Israeli troops attacked a large crowd rushing to retrieve supplies from an aid convoy, according to witnesses. The army opened fire.

Biden said airdrops would begin soon and Washington was exploring additional ways to deliver immediate aid to the war-torn region to ease the suffering of Palestinians.

Biden announced, “In the coming days we will join with our friends in Jordan and others who are providing air drops of food and additional supplies” and “we will look to open other avenues, possibly including a maritime corridor.”

The president mentioned Ukraine twice when talking about dropping air aid, but White House officials clarified he was referring to Gaza.

Israel said several people were crushed to death in a stampede linked to the chaos and that its troops fired at some people in the crowd who they believed were approaching them in a threatening manner. The Israeli government said it was investigating what happened.

Biden made the announcement while hosting Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni at the White House.

“The aid coming into Gaza is not enough,” Biden said. “Now this is not enough at all. Innocent lives are in danger and the lives of children are in danger. We will not rest until we get more help out there. “We need to get hundreds of trucks, not just several.”

For his part, Meloni said solving the humanitarian crisis in Gaza is Italy’s top priority.

“We need to coordinate our actions to prevent things from escalating, and in this regard we fully support US mediation efforts.”