the Humanitarian aid from the Guerrilla Flotilla to enter the Gaza Strip.
"We refuse to receive the humanitarian aid until all those who were detained aboard the ships are released," said Ahmed Kurd, Minister for Social Welfare in the Hamas government said. "We also insist that the equipment be delivered in its entirety."Israel held back construction equipment that could be used by Hamas to build tunnels into the Sinai to smuggle rockets into Gaza.
The Hamas minister said that Israel's decision to send some of the aid that was seized aboard the ships to the Gaza Strip was designed to divert attention from the "massacre" that took place in the sea.Hamas has a history of blocking aid to the people of Gaza. During the conflict with Hamas in late 2008/early 2009 the Arab press published many reports like the one below showing that Hamas was hijacking the humanitarian aid to keep it from the people.
Calling for lifting the blockade on the Gaza Strip, Kurd welcomed Egypt's decision to reopen the Rafah border crossing. He expressed hope that the terminal would remain opened on a permanent basis.
Taher a-Nunu, spokesman for the Hamas government, said that the issue of the humanitarian aid would be resolved only through consultations with the organizers of the convoy in Turkey.
Report: Jordanian aid convoy hijacked in GazaThe Issue is not humanitarian aid, as this report from CIC shows, Over one million tons of humanitarian supplies were delivered by Israel to the people of Gaza in the past 18 months – that’s equal to nearly one ton of aid for every man, woman and child in Gaza.
Bethlehem – Ma’an – The Jordanian news agency Petra reported on Tuesday that armed men held up an aid convoy after it crossed into the Gaza Strip.
The agency reported that armed men fired at the trucks and diverted them to private warehouses after they passed through the Kerem Shalom border crossing, an Israeli-controlled crossing used primarily for shipments of humanitarian aid.
The supplies had been donated by the Hashemite Jordanian charity organization. The trucks earlier crossed into the West Bank using the Allenby Bridge and then proceed to Gaza.
According to the report, the charity had coordinated in advance with UNRWA, the UN’s agency for Palestinian refugees, to receive the shipment in its warehouses after it entered Gaza.
Also according to the report, UNRWA has suspended other aid shipments as the trucks and drivers are still being held in Gaza. Negotiations are reportedly being held for their release.
- In the first quarter of 2010 alone (January-March), Israel delivered 94,500 tons of supplies to Gaza. It’s very easy to miss what that actually means for the people of Gaza. the breakdown includes:
- 40,000 tons of wheat – which is equal to 53 million loaves of bread;
- 2,760 tons of rice – which equals 69 million servings;
- 1,987 tons of clothes and footwear – the equivalent weight of 3.6 million pairs of jeans; and
- 553 tons of milk powder and baby food – equivalent to over 3.1 million days of formula for an average six-month-old baby.
- This reflects a long-term effort on the part of Israel to deliver a massive and comprehensive supply of aid to Gaza’s civilians, while restricting the ability of Hamas to import missiles that have been launched at the cities of southern Israel. In 2009 alone:
- During the Muslim holy days of Ramadan and Eid al-Adha, Israel shipped some 11,000 head of cattle into Gaza – enough to provide 8.8 million meals of beef;
- More than 3,000 tons of hypochlorite were delivered by Israel to Gaza for water purification purposes – that’s 60 billion gallons of purified water; and
- Israel brought some 4,883 tons of medical equipment and medicine into Gaza – a weight equivalent to over 360,000 260-piece mobile trauma first aid
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