• Faulty aid airdrop kills five people after parachute fails to open
• Airdrops are the last resort to sending aid to densely populated areas and outline the ineptitude of the US in convincing Israel to open its crossing
Five people have been killed and ten injured after a parachute on an aid package failed to open in Gaza. An eyewitness and Gaza’s health ministry have both confirmed the incident, with AFB News directly quoting a doctor with the same testimony.
The US, Norway, Egypt, France, and Belgium have been dropping aid into Gaza in recent days after evidence of deaths from starvation started coming out of hospitals.
It is unknown as to which country this aid drop belonged to, but Jordanian State TV has denied it belonged to Jordan, quoting a source suggesting a Jordanian aircraft was not involved in the incident.
The UN has said that nearly a quarter of Gaza’s 2.3 million population is on the brink of famine, with children already starving to death. Aid organisations have already given critical views on the airdrops, saying that they are incapable of meeting the needs in Gaza and that they are meant to be done as a ‘last resort’. Has the situation in Gaza forced the international community to use airdrops as a last resort? The reality is that there are still multiple crossings within the Gaza border areas that can still be used for the transportation of aid and necessities. The Erez crossing is the last crossing from Israel to northern Gaza. A crossing between Northern Gaza and Israel can be an essential pathway for aid deliveries of all kinds. Yet after October 7, when this genocide first began, Israel closed the crossing, and to this day it remains shut.
The reality of the matter is that the United States and its allies are doing risky, ambiguous manoeuvres through airdrops when as an alternative they can pressure Israel to reopen the Erez crossing to allow aid into Gaza at a much more effective and faster rate. Airdrops have proven to not reach some of those who are most in need, as the dropping is spontaneous in nature, with winds blowing much needed food and water to random locations.
US airdropped aid on the 5th of March, showing crates falling into the sea. Raising serious questions if the desperately needy are able to even access the aid
During the US airdrop into Gaza three days ago, crates could be seen falling into the ocean, highlighting the ineffectiveness of airdrops capability in delivering aid to the people who need it most. Today’s report not only proves that airdrops are incapable of providing any real change but is also evidence that they are dangerous enough to actually kill people. Today’s news of the deaths of five is evidence of that.
Will the US and its allies change strategies?
Although a presidential election is expected in the US this year, with a UK general election also expected, it’s likely the anti-Biden campaign pressure will not be enough to provide any immediate change. President Joe Biden could force Israel to open the Erez crossing in northern Gaza for a mass distribution of aid tomorrow if he wanted to. His reluctance to take quick and fast action demonstrates the US’s care for the feelings of its ally Israel and the lives of starving children in Palestine. The US has time and time again pushed itself into the line of action in the international community, portraying itself as the leader of the free world. The recent inability to provide for Gaza’s starving children is an affirmation that the US interest in pleasing its ally Israel is worth more than the interest of the global community.
