How is aid getting into Gaza?

Safe and unimpeded aid access is desperately needed in Gaza. But how is aid being delivered now?

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Last updated 13 February 2025

For months, the humanitarian situation in Gaza has grown more desperate by the day.

Since 2023, the Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS) has distributed more than 1.6 million emergency relief items and processed more than 22,000 trucks of humanitarian aid.

But with aid access restricted, people have lived through immense pain, suffering and hunger.

The January 2025 ceasefire agreement has provided an opportunity to ensure a greater and more consistent flow of humanitarian aid to those who need it, and to ensure humanitarian organisations like PRCS are able to safely deliver aid throughout Gaza.

• What is happening in Gaza?

Is aid getting into Gaza?

The situation on the ground in Gaza is ever-changing, but there has been a significant increase in the volume of aid crossing the border since the ceasefire agreement came into place. 

Hundreds of aid trucks a day are now arriving into Gaza from Egypt, Jordan and the West Bank.

From the start of the ceasefire agreement to 1 February, PRCS had received 164 trucks through the Rafah and Kerem Shalom crossings.

The Egyptian Red Crescent (ERCS) and its teams are currently responsible for facilitating the movement of all trucks of aid to the border.

The Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement is ready to significantly increase aid deliveries across borders and distribution within Gaza, led by PRCS in Gaza, ERCS at the border with Egypt, and facilitated by the International Federation of the Red Cross (IFRC). 

What's the humanitarian situation like in Gaza?

The lack of aid access has had devastating effects for the people of Gaza. For months on end, people have struggled to access enough food, clean water or shelter. The situation deteriorated rapidly after the May 2024 closure of the Rafah crossing, which had previously been a key route through which aid could be delivered. 

Almost everyone in Gaza relies on humanitarian aid, but for months the flow of aid was reduced to a trickle. 

With the ceasefire agreement now in place, hundreds of thousands of people are returning to northern Gaza, one of the hardest hit areas. The majority of those returning won’t have a roof over their heads, access to clean water, or basic services.  

The increased humanitarian aid reaching Gaza since the ceasefire deal is urgently needed in northern Gaza, and humanitarian agencies urgently need safe and sustained access to deliver this lifesaving aid. 

The Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS) continues to work tirelessly on the ground to provide essential support.  

What’s the quickest and best way to get aid into Gaza?

The quickest way to get aid into Gaza is to increase the aid passing through established crossings like Rafah, Kerem Shalom/Karem Abu Salem and Erez/Beit Hanoun.

Land-based delivery remains the most effective way to deliver aid into Gaza, as these roads are the main arteries for aid delivery and so have the greatest capacity. This approach is sustainable, reliable and has been successful in the past.

How has the Red Crescent been getting aid into Gaza?

Colleagues from the Palestine Red Crescent and the Egyptian Red Crescent are working day and night, delivering assistance.

They have done so for over a year, playing a critical role in getting aid across the border and distributed to people in Gaza.

The Palestine Red Crescent Society are one of very few humanitarian actors who are present in Gaza itself - from north to south.

“The Palestine Red Crescent Society are one of very few humanitarian actors who are present in Gaza itself, throughout the Gaza strip from the south to the north,” says Sumiko, who was recently deployed with the IFRC to act as an operations manager.

“They have been providing assistance, not just now because of the recent conflict, but throughout the history of the Occupied Palestinian Territory.”

How has Egypt been supporting aid efforts into Gaza?

“The Egyptian Red Crescent has played a huge, huge, huge role in getting humanitarian assistance into Gaza through that border", Sumiko continues.

“They are receiving and transporting goods from the EU, governments and different partner National Societies, whoever has donated. They were also mandated by the government to play that logistics role.

Checking each truckload, repackaging, sorting and transporting the aid for screening can take days. The Egyptian Red Crescent has established large-scale warehouses by the border to handle incoming aid, and have delivered 20,000 trucks to date.

On the other side of the Rafah border, the Palestine Red Crescent has been receiving all aid deliveries so that they can be distributed to those in need. This means loading and unloading every truck by hand, to ensure the flow of aid.

Has the Red Crescent managed to deliver aid into Gaza?

Yes – they have worked tirelessly since October 2023.

To date, the Palestine Red Crescent processed over 22,700 trucks of humanitarian aid, distributing over 1.6 million emergency relief items including food parcels, hygiene kits, blankets and tents. 

How has the British Red Cross been supporting?

During crises like the conflict in Israel, Gaza and the West Bank, the entire Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement comes together.

The British Red Cross is directly supporting Magen David Adom in Israel and the Palestine Red Crescent Society, to respond to their communities’ urgent needs.

We have provided funding as well as expert staff. Your donations have been invaluable in helping to fund this response.

How can more aid get into Gaza?

Though Gaza is facing a crisis that will not be healed by aid alone, aid agencies must be allowed to deliver more humanitarian assistance at a faster pace – and safely.

This will vastly improve people’s chances of survival. Aid agencies, including the Red Cross and Red Crescent, are here to safeguard civilian life and uphold human dignity.

How can people in the UK help people in Gaza?

Through a huge, sustained effort over a long period of time, we can avert an even greater catastrophe. We're on the ground and ready. Let's be there for people in Gaza.

• If you can, please donate to the Gaza Crisis appeal