In Palestine’s Gaza, food is falling from the sky while more than 22,000 aid trucks sit just kilometres away, blocked from entering the Palestinian territory by Israel. Only 14 percent of the requested aid has been allowed into the enclave, where over two million people are being deliberately starved. 

The UNRWA is urging the opening of road crossings and the large-scale delivery of aid throughout Gaza.

“If there is political will to allow airdrops — which are highly costly, insufficient and inefficient — there should be similar political will to open the road crossings,” UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini wrote on social media.  

Airdrops are at least 100 times more costly than trucks, which can carry twice as much aid as planes. They are also imprecise — risking damage to buildings and harm to civilians, while often landing in inaccessible or evacuated areas.