Gaza-Bound Aid Ship Unloads in Egypt

Avoiding the kind of confrontation that led to the flotilla fiasco in May, a Gaza-bound humanitarian aid ship has docked and unloaded its cargo in Egypt after the Israeli navy forbid it to sail directly to Gaza.

While the aid supplies are set to be trucked overland to the economically devastated Gaza Strip, some have criticized the ship’s detour as tacit acceptance of the illegal blockade that Israel has imposed on Palestinian territory. —JCL

Al Jazeera English:

Humanitarian cargo bound for the Gaza Strip has been unloaded from a Libyan-chartered ship in Egypt after the Israeli navy prevented the vessel from sailing to the Palestinian territory.

The Moldovan-flagged Amalthea, loaded with 2,000 tonnes of medical supplies and food, docked at the port of El Arish, on Egypt’s Mediterranean coast, about 45km south of the border with Gaza, on Wednesday.

Gamal Abdel Maqsoud, director of the port, said that Egypt’s Red Crescent Society would deliver the aid to Gaza by land across the Egyptian border.

“Medical supplies and passengers will enter Gaza through the Rafah border [crossing], while food will enter through the Awja border,” Maqsoud said.

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AP / Nasser Nasser

Supplies bound for hard-pressed Gaza are unloaded at the port of El Arish on Egypt’s Mediterranean coast.