The Kingdom of Jordan is set to airdrop humanitarian aid into Gaza as Palestinians face widespread starvation and diplomatic talks over a ceasefire break down. Jordan’s Royal Air Force will restart the drop by drawing from a stockpile of 500 tons of food in Amman, with military aircraft dropping the food into designated drop zones, which are being coordinated with Israeli authorities. The renewed airdrops are expected to surpass the scale of airdrops conducted by Jordan in 2024, which delivered over 1,000 tons of aid to Palestinians.
Cases of severe malnutrition in children under 5 in Gaza have tripled in just two weeks, according to Doctors Without Borders (MSF). One in three people in the enclave, 70% of whose territory is controlled by Israel, have not eaten for multiple days in a row, the World Food Programme said this week. UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini warned that airdrops are the “most expensive and inefficient way to deliver aid,” calling them a “distraction to the inaction.”
The war in Gaza is now just short of two years, and aid is limited to a trickle of aid convoys and distribution coordinated by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, a U.S.-backed private company that has faced widespread criticism as its aid distribution points have been marked with violence and chaos since they began operating at the end of May. Over 1,000 people have been killed at aid distribution sites since May, and Israel has initiated a review into an incident Sunday in which dozens of Palestinians were killed at an aid site after acknowledging troops fired near crowds.
The Jordanian Royal Air Force’s C-130s, which conducted the drops in 2024 and can carry 14 tons of food each, will be tasked with the operation again. Aid organizations say children in Gaza are starving to death in increasing numbers, and UNICEF points to more than four who reportedly died in the last 48 hours.
