Israel was hit by an unprecedented rocket attack from the Gaza Strip on October 7, with Hamas movement's troops infiltrating border areas. On October 8, the Israeli government announced that it had invoked Article 40 of the Basic Law, which means the country was officially in a state of war.

Photos: Gaza's Besieged Population Receives Humanitarian Aid

16:10, 24 October 2023

On October 7, the Hamas movement launched rocket attacks on Israeli positions and infiltrated the border areas from the Gaza Strip. The next day, Tel Aviv declared a state of war, launched massive retaliatory strikes on Gaza and later announced a total blockade of the Strip, cutting off water, food, electricity, medicine and fuel.

Sputnik

After two weeks of unprecedented daily bombardment by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) and Israel's blockade of water, food, medicine, electricity and fuel, the Gaza Strip, home to 2.4 million people, has finally begun to receive shipments of humanitarian aid through the Rafah checkpoint on the border with Egypt.

A first convoy arrived on Saturday, including 20 truckloads of medical and food supplies for Gaza's besieged population. A second batch of 17 trucks of humanitarian aid passed through the Rafah crossing on Sunday.

As of Tuesday afternoon, at least four shipments of humanitarian aid have been released into the Strip, where at least 5,791 people have been killed in Israeli attacks on civilian neighborhoods, including a hospital.

According to the United Nations, Gaza needs about 100 aid trucks a day to meet the needs of its population, nearly half of whom have been displaced by Israeli bombardment.

Check out Sputnik Africa's gallery, covering the delivery of humanitarian aid to Gaza Strip!

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United Nations and Red Crescent workers prepare the aid for distribution to Palestinians at UNRWA warehouse in Deir Al-Balah, Gaza Strip, on Monday, Oct. 23, 2023.

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A man unloads humanitarian aid on a convoy of lorries entering the Gaza Strip from Egypt via the Rafah border crossing on October 21, 2023.

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People unload humanitarian aid on a convoy of lorries entering the Gaza Strip from Egypt via the Rafah border crossing on October 21, 2023.

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Workers unload medical aid from the World Health Organization at the Nasser hospital in Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza Strip on October 23, 2023. An aid convoy entered the besieged Gaza Strip through the Rafah border crossing on October 23, the third since the outbreak of violence on October 7.

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United Nations and Red Crescent workers prepare the aid for distribution to Palestinians at UNRWA warehouse in Deir Al-Balah, Gaza Strip, on Monday, Oct. 23, 2023.

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United Nations and Red Crescent workers prepare the aid for distribution to Palestinians at UNRWA warehouse in Deir Al-Balah, Gaza Strip, on Monday, Oct. 23, 2023.

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Medical aid from the World Health Organization arrives at the Nasser hospital in Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza Strip on October 23, 2023.