GAZA, Palestine

The first aid delivery in about four months reached Gaza’s northern city of Jabalia, local sources said early Monday.

The Israeli army allowed nine trucks carrying humanitarian aid to enter the northern Gaza Strip including Jabalia, Beit Hanoun and Beit Lahiya, sources told Anadolu.

The aid, which consisted of flour, rice, canned food and sugar, arrived at the Jabalia refugee camp under the auspices of the security services of the Gaza government in cooperation with Palestinian tribes.

It was placed in warehouses belonging to the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, or UNRWA.

UNRWA carried out its first regular aid distribution on Sunday in cooperation with the Gaza government's security forces and Palestinian tribes.

Hundreds of Palestinians flocked to the distribution center, and each family was given five kilograms (11 pounds) of flour as part of the aid distribution.

At least 27 people have died of malnutrition and dehydration in Gaza as a result of an Israeli blockade, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry.

Israel has waged a deadly military offensive on Gaza since a cross-border incursion by the Palestinian group Hamas on Oct. 7, 2023 which killed nearly 1,200 people.

More than 31,600 Palestinians, mostly women and children, have since been killed in the enclave, and nearly 73,700 others injured amid mass destruction and shortages of necessities.

The Israeli war has pushed 85% of Gaza’s population into internal displacement amid a crippling blockade of most food, clean water and medicine, while 60% of the enclave's infrastructure has been damaged or destroyed, according to the UN.

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

*Writing by Gozde Bayar