World Food Program urges faster access as it ramps up aid to Gaza

The UN's World Food Program (WFP) said Saturday that it is scaling up aid operations in Gaza, urging faster access and clearance at entry points as over 170,000 metric tons of food — enough to feed the entire population for up to three months — await dispatch amid a nascent ceasefire.

The WFP said tons of food are ready for dispatch or en route to Gaza via Ashdod, Egypt, Jordan, and the West Bank.

The UN agency also said scaling up deliveries will require "fast, efficient use of all entry points, secure and unhindered humanitarian access, rehabilitation of vital infrastructure and storage facilities, and faster clearance protocols at the Ashdod port."

The WFP said it is preparing to reach up to 1.6 million people in the first three months with bread, wheat flour, and family food parcels. It plans to expand bakery support from 10 to 30 sites, producing 100,000 bundles of fresh bread daily.

The WFP also aims to boost support for pregnant and breastfeeding women, and expand digital payment assistance — already reaching 140,000 people — to help vulnerable groups buy food locally.

"Despite the many challenges, WFP has worked tirelessly to adapt its operations," the agency said, adding that the new ceasefire must hold for it to operate "at the scale needed for a crisis of this magnitude."

US President Donald Trump announced Wednesday that Israel and Hamas had agreed to the first phase of a 20-point plan to bring a ceasefire to Gaza, release all Israeli captives being held there in exchange for around 2,000 Palestinian prisoners, and a gradual withdrawal of Israeli forces from the entire Gaza Strip.

Phase one of the deal came into force at midday Friday.

Phase two calls for the establishment of a new governing mechanism in Gaza without Hamas' participation, the formation of a security force made up of Palestinians and troops from Arab and Islamic countries, and the disarmament of Hamas.

Since October 2023, Israeli attacks have killed nearly 67,700 Palestinians in the enclave, most of them women and children, and rendered it largely uninhabitable.