Egypt, United Arab Emirates deliver 5th humanitarian aid airdrop to Gaza

Egypt and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) carried out a fifth joint airdrop humanitarian aid mission Friday for Palestinians in the war-torn Gaza Strip, according to the Emirati news agency, WAM.

The mission was part of the Gulf country's "Birds of Goodness" humanitarian aid airdrop operation to Palestinians in Gaza.

The operation used Emirati and Egyptian aircraft and dropped 62 metric tons (68 US tons) of food and medical aid, bringing the total to 231 metric tons since the operation was launched, said WAM.

Under the directives of Emirati President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al-Nahyan, the UAE, launched its humanitarian operation Nov. 5, named Gallant Knight 3 to provide relief and medical assistance to the Palestinians, under which the Birds of Goodness operation is part of the overall Emirati operation to Palestinians in Gaza.

For more than a week, Arab countries, namely Egypt, the Emirates, Jordan, Qatar, Oman and Bahrain have continued to carry out joint operations to drop food aid in Gaza, in addition to similar operations by the U.S.

Israel has launched a retaliatory offensive on Gaza since a cross-border attack by Hamas on Oct. 7. The offensive has killed more than 30,800 victims and injured nearly 73,000 amid mass destruction and shortages of necessities.

Israel has also imposed a crippling blockade on the Palestinian enclave, leaving its population, particularly residents of northern Gaza, on the verge of starvation.

About 85% of Gazans have been displaced by the Israeli onslaught amid acute shortages of food, clean water and medicine, while 60% of the enclave's infrastructure has been damaged or destroyed, according to the UN.

Israel is accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice, which in an interim ruling in January ordered Tel Aviv to stop genocidal acts and take measures to guarantee that humanitarian assistance is provided to civilians in Gaza.