Aid reaches Palestinians for first time after border opens

The border crossing between Egypt and Gaza opened on Saturday to let desperately needed aid flow to Palestinians for the first time since Israel sealed off the territory following Hamasrsquo bloody rampage two weeks agoGazarsquos 23 lakh Palestinians half of whom have fled their homes are rationing food and drinking filthy water Hospitals say they are running low on medical supplies and fuel for emergency generators amid a territorywide power blackout Israel has launched waves of airstrikes across the territory but those have failed to stem ongoing Palestinian rocket fire into IsraelThe opening came after more than a week of highlevel diplomacy by various mediators including visits to the region by US President Joe Biden and UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres Israel had insisted that nothing would enter Gaza until some 200 people captured by Hamas were freed and the Palestinian side of the crossing had been shut down by Israeli airstrikes More than 200 trucks carrying roughly 3000 tonnes of aid which had been positioned near the crossing for days began heading into Gaza Hundreds of foreign passport holders also waited to cross from Gaza to Egypt to escape the conflictAid trucks waited at the border for days before it was opened PicPTIHundreds of foreign passport holders also waited to cross from Gaza to Egypt to escape the conflict Aid workers on the Egyptian side of the crossing could be seen chanting and clapping as trucks passed through the main gate to Gaza The opening came hours after Hamas released an American woman and her teenage daughter the first captives to be freed after the militant grouprsquos October 7 incursion into Israel It was not immediately clear if there was any connection between the twoAlso read Mumbai Two braveheart constables didnrsquot wait for fire brigadeHamas released Judith Raanan and her 17yearold daughter Natalie on Friday for what it said were humanitarian reasons in an agreement with Qatar a Persian Gulf nation that has often served as a Middle East mediator The two had been on a trip from their home in suburban Chicago to Israel to celebrate Jewish holidays the family said They were in the kibbutz of Nahal Oz near Gaza when Hamas and other militants stormed into southern Israeli towns killing hundreds and abducting 203 othersBiden spoke with the two freed hostages and their relatives The International Committee of the Red Cross which transported the freed Americans to Israel said their release was a ldquosliver of hoperdquo Hamas said in a statement that it was working with mediators ldquoto close the caserdquo of hostages if security circumstances permit The group said it is committed to mediation efforts by Egypt Qatar and othersThere are growing expectations of a ground offensive that Israel says would be aimed at rooting out Hamas an Islamic militant group that has ruled Gaza for 16 years Israel said Friday it does not plan to take longterm control over the small but denselypopulated Palestinian territory Israel has also traded fire along its northern border with Lebanonrsquos Hezbollah militant group raising concerns about a second front opening up The Israeli military said Saturday it struck Hezbollah targets in Lebanon in response to recent rocket launches and attacks with antitank missilesA potential Israeli ground assault is likely to lead to a dramatic escalation in casualties on both sides in urban fighting More than 1400 people in Israel have been killed in the warmdashmostly civilians slain during the Hamas incursion Palestinian militants have continued to launch unrelenting rocket attacks into Israelmdashmore than 6900 projectiles per Israel1400Israeli civilians slain during Hamas incursion3000Tonnes of aid ferried by 200 trucks to Gazan residentsThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever