Ship with 1,900 tons of humanitarian aid for Gaza to depart from Türkiye

A ship carrying humanitarian aid for Gaza has been scheduled to set sail from southern Türkiye.

A total of 1,900 tons of humanitarian aid materials consisting of food, health, hygiene, and shelter supplies were loaded onto the "Türkiye-Qatar Gaza Goodness Ship" at Mersin International Port under the guidance of the Turkish Disaster and Emergency Management Authority (AFAD), the state-run organisation said on Wednesday.

After the completion of preparations at Mersin International Port, the ship will depart with a ceremony and is expected to arrive at Al Arish Port in Egypt, the nearest region to Gaza, nearly 40 hours later.

So far, 52,016 tons of various humanitarian aid materials have been delivered to Gaza by 13 aircraft and 10 ships through the cooperation of AFAD, the Health Ministry, the Directorate of Foundations, the Turkish Red Crescent, and non-governmental organisations.

Israel has pounded Gaza in retaliation for the October 7th cross-border attack by Hamas.

Nearly 34,800 Palestinians have since been killed in Gaza, mostly women and children, and 78,100 others injured, according to Palestinian health authorities since October 7.

Seven months into the Israeli war, vast swathes of Gaza lay in ruins, pushing 85 percent of the enclave's population into internal displacement amid a crippling blockade of food, clean water, and medicine, according to the UN.

Israel stands accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice. An interim ruling in January said it is "plausible" that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza and ordered Tel Aviv to stop such acts and take measures to guarantee that humanitarian assistance is provided to civilians in Gaza.