Aid Ship Set to Sail from Cyprus to Gaza

An American charity organization has announced it is loading aid onto a ship in Cyprus, destined for the conflict-ravaged Gaza Strip.

This initiative is poised to be the first to reach the area through a maritime corridor, which the European Commission hopes to open by the end of this week.

Laura Lanuza, spokesperson for the Spanish NGO Open Arms and partner in this venture under World Central Kitchen led by American-Spanish chef José Andrés, informed Agence France-Presse that preparations are underway for an imminent departure, pending the finalization of licenses and permits.

The Israeli authorities, having initially greenlit this operation alongside the Cypriot authorities, are currently inspecting the cargo at the port of Larnaca, consisting of two hundred tons of food supplies, including rice, flour, and canned tuna.

Open Arms revealed that World Central Kitchen has had personnel on the ground in Gaza since the start of the conflict, and efforts are being made to construct a dock to facilitate the immediate unloading of supplies upon the ship's arrival in the coastal region.

The exact location of this dock remains undisclosed for security reasons.

The Open Arms vessel, typically engaged in migrant rescue operations at sea under the Spanish flag, docked three weeks ago in Larnaca, Cyprus, the European Union member state closest to the Gaza Strip.

In a recent statement, the NGO highlighted that World Central Kitchen teams are in Cyprus to load humanitarian aid onto a ship bound for northern Gaza.

The organization emphasized its weeks-long preparation in collaboration with Open Arms to establish a maritime aid corridor to enhance its efforts in the region.

Open Arms shared on the X platform that their ship is ready to depart, laden with tons of food, water, and essential supplies for Palestinian civilians.

The NGO aims to charter a vessel filled with supplies for Gaza's residents, where humanitarian conditions have deteriorated significantly over five months into the conflict between Israel and the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas).

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, during her visit to Cyprus on Friday, mentioned that a humanitarian corridor to the Gaza Strip could be operational by Sunday.

This corridor is intended to be a safe passage in a specified geographical area, established through agreements between parties in an armed conflict.

Details regarding the destinations of the first batches of humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip have not been disclosed.