Biden OKs US air-drop aid into Gaza after Palestinians killed by Israeli troops
WASHINGTON - President Joe Biden on Friday announced plans for the U.S. to implement the air-dropping of humanitarian aid into Gaza, following the killings of dozens of Palestinians by Israeli soldiers.
Biden announced the long-considered mission after at least 115 Palestinians were killed and more than 750 others were injured, according to Gaza’s Hamas-run health ministry, on Thursday. Israeli troops opened fire as huge crowds raced to pull goods off an aid convoy.
Biden said the air drops will begin in the "coming days," adding that the U.S. was looking into more ways to bring much needed aid into the region and to help ease the suffering of Palestinians.
"In the coming days we’re going to join with our friends in Jordan and others who are providing airdrops of additional food and supplies" and will "seek to open up other avenues in, including possibly a marine corridor," Biden said.
Aid flowing to Gaza is nowhere nearly enough," Biden continued. "Now, it’s nowhere nearly enough. Innocent lives are on the line and children’s lives are on the line. We won’t stand by until we get more aid in there. We should be getting hundreds of trucks in, not just several."
Israel said many of the dead were trampled in a stampede linked to the chaos and that its troops fired at some in the crowd who they believed moved toward them in a threatening way.
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Earlier this week, Biden said he was optimistic that a cease-fire deal could be reached by early next week but he acknowledged that Thursday's massacre may set a deal back.
"We’ve been working and hopefully we’ll know shortly," Biden said.
The Associated Press contributed to this story. It was reported from Los Angeles.