DaysofPal– Aid and commercial supplies entering the Gaza Strip remain severely limited amid continued Israeli restrictions on border crossings, deepening the humanitarian and economic crisis, a leading transport industry representative warned on Friday.
Jihad Sleem, deputy head of the Association of Private Transport Companies in Gaza, said in an interview with Sanad News Agency that the flow of trucks into the enclave has dropped sharply.
Sleem disputed recent remarks attributed to senior envoy Nikolay Mladenov, who reportedly claimed that 620 aid trucks had entered Gaza.
“What actually came into Gaza today does not exceed 30 aid trucks, in addition to 6 trucks belonging to the World Food Program,” Sleem said, stressing that these numbers “do not meet the minimum needs of the population under the current conditions.”
He noted that, even at best in recent weeks, the total number of trucks entering the Strip has not surpassed 300 per day, less than half the pre-war average of around 600 trucks daily. The sharp decline, he said, illustrates the scale of the collapse in supply flows.
Sleem added that the movement of goods through the crossings during April has been subject to very tight restrictions, particularly during Jewish holidays, when the crossings are closed for much of the time.
This, he said, further complicates efforts to bring in aid and commercial goods.
He described such Israeli policy as engineering the nature and quantity of goods allowed into Gaza, arguing that this approach appears aimed at maintaining a state of need and pressure on the population rather than meeting their basic requirements.
The continuation of such policies, he warned, will further deteriorate living conditions and pose serious risks to key sectors across the Strip unless the crossings are fully and regularly opened to sufficient volumes of supplies.
The Gaza-based Government Media Office also rejected Mladenov’s reported figures, saying they bear “no relation to reality on the ground.”
In a press statement, the office said the claim that 602 trucks had entered Gaza was devoid of truth, lacking accuracy and credibility, and contradicting documented field facts.
It accused the official of presenting misleading numbers and neglecting core responsibilities.
Senior Hamas official Basem Naim likewise denied Mladenov’s assertions regarding the entry of 602 trucks, saying such misrepresentation cannot conceal the worsening humanitarian catastrophe.
Naim called on the international community to shoulder its responsibilities and to ensure full implementation of the first phase of the Gaza ceasefire agreement before moving to subsequent stages.
Under a humanitarian protocol included in the ceasefire deal signed in October last year, 600 aid trucks are supposed to enter Gaza daily, including 50 fuel trucks, according to an earlier statement from the Government Media Office.
The office said Israeli compliance with this provision has not exceeded 38 percent.
Despite the agreement, Israeli forces continue to violate the ceasefire on a daily basis, the media office and Gaza authorities say.
According to the latest figures from the Ministry of Health in Gaza, these violations have resulted in the deaths of 738 Palestinians and injuries to 2,036 others since the ceasefire took effect.
Shortlink for this post: https://daysofpalestine.ps/?p=73765
