Today marks the start of humanitarian aid air drops from Italy to the Gaza Strip, as part of the “Food for Gaza” Operation launched in March 2024 by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Antonio Tajani, together with FAO, the World Food Programme, and the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC). The programme has since been expanded to include other initiatives such as the evacuation of Palestinian minors in need of medical care and the provision of scholarships to Palestinian students.
With crucial cooperation from the Ministry of Defence, the air drops are currently being managed by the Italian Air Force and Army, deployed at an airbase in Jordan: a total shipment of one hundred tonnes of food supplies was transferred last Friday from Fiumicino to Amman. From today and for one week, further air drops will follow, parachuted onto the Strip by the Italian Air Force. These air drops complement convoys that departed by land in recent days from Jordan carrying additional aid that had entered through Israeli crossings.
Thanks to “Food for Gaza”, Italy has allocated food aid (over 200 tonnes of food and 2,000 tonnes of flour in partnership with the World Food Programme), medical supplies, and essential goods to alleviate the suffering of the Palestinian civilian population.
