Canadian Armed Forces airdrop aid to Palestinians in Gaza

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OTTAWA — Canadian aircraft carried out an airdrop of nearly 10,000 kilograms of aid to Palestinians in Gaza on Monday as Prime Minister Mark Carney warns of a deteriorating humanitarian crisis in the region. 

The Canadian Armed Forces flew a CC-130J Hercules aircraft over the Gaza Strip to conduct the drop, said Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand and Defence Minister David McGuinty in a media statement. 

Carney said in a social media post Monday that the “humanitarian disaster in Gaza is rapidly deteriorating.” 

“Canada is intensifying our efforts with international partners to develop a credible peace plan and will ensure aid moves forward at the necessary scale,” he said. 

Carney had posted video earlier in the week of Canadian aid pallets delivered to Gaza via Jordanian military aircraft. 

Anand said in a separate social media post that she remains in contact with her counterpart in Jordan to ensure Canadian aid reaches Palestinians via air and land. 

Israel imposed a blockade on Gaza in March, arguing that Hamas had been selling vital supplies and food to pay its fighters. UN agencies say this was not happening to any large extent. 

After 2 1/2 months, Israel allowed Americans to launch the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, which set up aid distribution sites. Hundreds of Palestinians have been killed by Israeli army fire and American contractors while trying to access those sites. 

Israel recently loosened some restrictions on food and medicine reaching the Gaza Strip in response to an international outcry over starvation in the Palestinian territory. 

Global Affairs Canada said in a release Monday that Israel’s ongoing aid restrictions are in violation of international law “and must end immediately.” 

“Canada reiterates calls for the guarantee of safe and unimpeded access for humanitarian organizations, including the opening of all crossings, the rapid approval of customs clearances and all humanitarian goods into Gaza, and the issuance of long-term visas for aid workers,” the statement read. 

On Wednesday, Carney cited Israel’s aid restrictions and the need to preserve a path to a two-state solution as reasons for declaring that Canada would officially recognize a State of Palestine. 

Carney said the move was conditional on the Palestinian Authority undertaking serious reforms and holding an election next year for the first time in two decades. 

— with files from Dylan Robertson