• 12 people have died trying to retrieve airdropped aid that had fallen into the Mediterranean Ocean.
• Hamas calls for an end to all airdrops.
The recent tragedy in Gaza underscores the inefficiencies and risks associated with aid airdrops as a method of delivering essential supplies to the region. Twelve individuals tragically lost their lives while attempting to retrieve airdropped aid that had fallen into the Mediterranean Ocean. Hamas has called for an end to all airdrops in light of these devastating consequences.
According to a Pentagon spokesperson, three out of 80 aid bundles dropped by the United States on Monday ‘were reported to have parachute malfunctions and landed in the water’. According to the spokesperson, ‘The aid was intentionally dropped over water and intended to be carried to land by wind drift to mitigate potential harm in the event that the parachutes failed to deploy’.
Karine Jean-Pierre, the White House press secretary, said on Wednesday that the Biden administration expressed “condolences to the families of those who died.” This is not the first time an airdrop has been responsible for deaths in Gaza. Earlier this month, an airdrop’s parachute failed to deploy and was responsible for the deaths of five people, injuring ten. In fact, even on Tuesday, six people were killed in a stampede as they hurried to get aid from airdrops in other locations.
Airdrops are the worst way to bring aid into Gaza
Aid airdrops are often deemed one of the least effective methods for delivering aid to Gaza due to their inherent inaccuracies, safety risks in conflict zones, limited capacity, high cost inefficiency, environmental impact, and lack of community engagement. These airdrops frequently fail to accurately deliver aid to intended locations, pose safety threats to both aid workers and recipients, and are costlier than alternative delivery methods like ground convoys or sea shipments. Moreover, they contribute to environmental degradation and often overlook the specific needs and priorities of local communities. While airdrops may be necessary in emergencies or when other options are unavailable, their inefficiencies make them far from ideal for sustained aid delivery in Gaza or similar contexts. Both the UN and aid agencies have said that trucks are the safest, cheapest, and most effective way of delivering aid to Gaza, but the United States, Jordan, Egypt, and France have used airdrops in recent weeks.
The reality is that there are several crossings into Gaza that Israel is choosing to keep closed to prevent aid from reaching the starving population. A UN-backed report said last Monday that 70% of the people are already suffering catastrophic levels of hunger. This means that 70% of the entirety of northern Gaza is facing death in the near term because of their hunger. This, coupled with the fact that the entirety of the Gaza Strip is in some form of starvation, means that the need for the opening of the crossings around Gaza is now.
The United States can put pressure on Israel but chooses not to
Although the criticism and disagreements between the United States and Israel have increased in recent weeks, with the US even abstaining from a UN security council vote on Monday calling for an immediate ceasefire, it is still an unfortunate reality that the United States has failed to pressure the pro-genocidal state of Israel into allowing more aid into Gaza. Even David Cameron, the UK foreign minister, said it is “incredibly frustrating” that Israel is not taking steps to allow more aid into Gaza amid a “terrible humanitarian situation.” Senior US and UN officials and NGOs have also accused Israel of obstructing vital life-saving aid for Gaza’s population of 2.3 million. Israel, however, has claimed it is allowing aid into Gaza but has shown little to no evidence of its claim.
The Erez crossing is a crossing between the northern part of Gaza and Israel. Before October 7th, it was open, and although heavily restricted, it was possible for aid trucks and Palestinians to go through to see loved ones outside of the blockade. Since the October 7 Hamas offensive, this crossing has been closed by Israel and hasn’t been opened since. If the United States and its allies truly cared about feeding the millions of people starving in Gaza, they could pressure Israel to open the crossing, but they have not done anywhere near enough. Aid airdrops have not even caused a dent in the humanitarian crisis in Gaza and seem to be a pathetic attempt to bolster President Biden’s PR for the upcoming US elections rather than actually get work done. As days become weeks, with no increase in real aid getting into Gaza, every starving mother who must see her baby pass away out of starvation is in the hands of western leaders.
