First fuel truck starts crossing into Gaza from Egypt

CAIRO - The first lorry to deliver fuel to the Gaza Strip since Israel imposed a total siege on the enclave in its war with Hamas began crossing from Egypt on Wednesday, according to two Egyptian security sources.

The delivery was made possible by Israel giving its approval for 24,000 litres of diesel fuel to be allowed into Gaza for use by United Nations aid distribution lorries, but not for use at hospitals.

Limited deliveries of humanitarian aid have been crossing from Egypt into Gaza since Oct 21, but Israel has refused to allow in fuel, saying Hamas is holding plentiful stocks.

The United Nations has warned in recent days that it may soon have to halt humanitarian operations, including the distribution of relief within Gaza, as its fuel stocks become fully depleted.

Aid workers say a lack of fuel, which is needed for hospital generators and provision of water, as well as the distribution of relief, has contributed to a sharp deterioration of conditions for Gaza’s 2.3 million residents.

The initial delivery of 24,000 litres of fuel was intended to be carried out over two days, with 12,000 litres allocated for each day, an international source with knowledge of the operation said.

“This is not enough for anything – not for hospitals, not even for aid deliveries,” said the source, speaking on condition of anonymity. “It’s meant to be enough only to bring some of the aid that has been outside – and got rained on for example – indoors to the warehouses.”

Witnesses at the Egyptian border said two more lorries were waiting to pass through the crossing.

Meanwhile, Bloomberg reported that the Pentagon has quietly ramped up military aid to Israel, delivering on requests that include more laser-guided missiles for its Apache gunship fleet, as well as 155mm shells, night-vision devices, bunker-buster munitions and new army vehicles, according to an internal Defence Department list.

The weapons pipeline to Israel is extending beyond the well-publicised provision of Iron Dome interceptors and Boeing smart bombs. It continues even as Biden administration officials increasingly caution Israel about trying to avoid civilian casualties in the Gaza Strip. 

The arms sought by Israel as it fights Hamas, designated as a terrorist group by the US and European Union, are listed in a document labelled “Israel Senior Leader” requests that is dated late October and is circulating in the Pentagon.

The arms are already being shipped, or the Defence Department is working to make them available from stockpiles in the US and Europe, according to the document reviewed by Bloomberg News. As at late October, for example, all 36,000 rounds of 30mm cannon ammunition, 1,800 of the requested M141 bunker-buster munitions and at least 3,500 night-vision devices were delivered, the tally shows.

A Pentagon spokesman declined to discuss specifics, but the Defence Department said in a statement that it is “leveraging several avenues – from internal stocks to US industry channels – to ensure Israel has the means to defend itself”.

“This security assistance continues to arrive on a near-daily basis,” according to the statement. It said the US was rapidly providing precision-guided munitions, small-diameter bombs, 155mm artillery shells and other munitions. That is along with Iron Dome interceptors and medical support equipment.

The provision of artillery shells and other munitions has drawn criticism from non-governmental organisations.

They say the US supplies have allowed Israel to press ahead with a bombing campaign that has killed thousands.

More than 11,000 people have been killed in the Gaza Strip, the Hamas-run health authorities said.

In a letter on Monday, more than 30 relief organisations wrote to Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin urging him not to send the 155mm shells, in particular.

“In Gaza, one of the world’s most densely populated places, 155mm artillery shells are inherently indiscriminate. These munitions are unguided and have a high error radius,” the organisations said, adding that the shells often land 25m away from the intended target.

The ammunition for AH-64 Apache helicopter gunships includes about 2,000 Hellfire Laser Guided missiles made by Lockheed Martin Corp, some of which Israel has transferred to its forces as US Army teams seek supplies from stocks in Germany and South Korea, according to the tally.

It also includes more than 36,000 rounds of 30mm ammunition to be fired by the Apache’s cannon.

Israel’s defence forces have flown the Boeing-built Apaches for years.

The Israeli military appears to be using the Apache helicopters “to support Israel troops in contact with Hamas fighters, using their 30mm chain guns against fighters caught out in the open and Hellfire missiles against vehicles and fighting position or bunkers used by Hamas”, Mr Michael Eisenstadt, director of military and security programmes at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, said in an e-mail. 

“They may also be using Hellfires for the targeted killing of senior commanders when the opportunity presents itself.”

Reverse trip

Israel has also requested more than 57,000 155mm high-explosive artillery shells and 20,000 M4A1 rifles, as many as 5,000 PVS-14 night-vision devices and 3,000 M141 hand-held bunker-buster munitions that US Central Command is supplying, 400 120mm mortars and 75 of the Army and Marine Corps’ new Joint Light Tactical Vehicle, which is replacing the Hummer.

According to the tally, the US has also donated its inventory of 312 Tamir missile interceptors. The Army’s two Iron Dome batteries are travelling to Israel by sealift.

The weapons shipments include a reverse trip for 155mm shells.

The 57,000 artillery shells had been sent from US stocks in Israel to US European Command locations to restock munitions that were sent to Ukraine for its fight against Russia’s invasion. Now, the restocked munitions are being sent back to Israel for its use in the conflict with Hamas, according to a congressional aide and US officials.

In contrast to Israel, the US has provided more than two million 155mm shells and more than 800,000 105mm rounds to Ukraine, according to a new State Department summary.

Switchblade drones

Israel has also requested 200 armour-piercing Switchblade 600 dive-bombing drones made by AeroVironment Inc. Ukraine has bought the drones directly from the company. 

The US Army does not have any Switchblade 600s in its inventory. It’s unclear whether AeroVironment has the drones in stock or would need to build them. An AeroVironment spokesperson declined to comment. 

The US could steer Foreign Military Financing grants for purchase through the Foreign Military Sales process, according to an industry official familiar with the issue. DefenseScoop, a Washington-based defence technology newsletter, disclosed the Switchblade 600 request earlier. AFP, BLOOMBERG, REUTERS