Following the Gulf state’s mediation of an agreement between Israel and Hamas to supply essential medical supplies to the war-torn region, medicine for Palestinians and Israeli captives has reached Gaza, the country announced on Wednesday.
Under the terms of the deal reached on Tuesday, which was brokered by Qatar, medical supplies and humanitarian aid would be given to Palestinians in return for medicine for Israeli prisoners held by Hamas in Gaza.
A spokesman for the Qatari Foreign Ministry, Dr. Majed Al-Ansari, tweeted on X, “Over the past few hours, medicine & aid entered the Gaza Strip, in implementation of the agreement announced yesterday for the benefit of civilians in the Strip, including hostages.”
“Qatar continues to work with its regional and global partners to mediate political and humanitarian issues.”
According to the ministry’s earlier statement, the medicine departed Doha on Wednesday and traveled to Egypt before being shipped to Gaza.
According to Hamas spokesman in Lebanon, Osama Hamdan, the arrangement hinged on providing adequate medicine to Gaza’s Palestinians in addition to the Israeli detainees.
Hamas has mandated that 1,000 medicine boxes must be provided to Palestinians in Gaza for each box of medicine delivered to the hostages.
The agreement comes in response to requests for medication to be given to the loved ones of the more than 100 captives who are still thought to be alive in Gaza.
Palestinians – Hostages in Need
Over three months have passed since the October 7 attack by Hamas militants in Israel, which resulted in the deaths of 1,200 people and the kidnapping of over 250 more. Israel asserts that 105 of the 132 captives said to be kept captive in the strip are still alive.
The relatives of the victims’ advocacy group, the Hostages and Missing relatives Forum, claims that every day they are held captive poses a greater risk to their health and well-being.
In a study published last week, the forum stated that at least one-third of the hostages suffer from long-term ailments that need medicine. It also stated that “others suffer from illnesses related to the harsh captivity conditions, which include mental and physical torture.”
According to a source involved with the talks, the agreement calls for the medicine to be sent into Gaza to be administered to over 40 hostages who are deemed to be in need by Israel.
The Israeli military asserted that it “cannot guarantee” that the captives’ medical supplies will arrive.
Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari, a spokesman for the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), stated during a press conference on Wednesday that the military will collaborate with Qatar to guarantee that the prisoners receive medication.
The fact that this effort is made and that the vehicles are presently being inspected is crucial. We must take all necessary steps to guarantee that the pharmaceuticals will, in fact, reach their intended destination. They will complete the checks and enter Gaza, according to Hagari.
Escalating humanitarian catastrophe
Israel has increased military operations in the besieged enclave since a week-long truce ended in November. The Health Ministry, operated by Hamas, reports that at least 24,400 people have died there, including over 10,000 children.
Children are having surgeries without anesthetic because to severe shortages of medical supplies and medications in Gaza, according to UNICEF and a British physician who oversaw an emergency medical team at the Al-Aqsa Hospital in the city.
Humanitarian organizations claim that although Israel has let some supplies and medication to reach Gaza during the conflict, it is well short of what is required.
The chief of UN emergency relief, Martin Griffiths, stated this week that the famine that has been brought to the coastal enclave by Israel’s war in Gaza has spread “such incredible speed” and that the “great majority” of the 400,000 Gazans classified by UN agencies as starving “are actually in famine, not just at risk of famine.”
The UN has expressed dissatisfaction at Israel’s rejection of missions intended to transport supplies to northern Gaza.
The UN estimates that of the 2.2 million people who lived in Gaza prior to the conflict, about 90% have been displaced, and only a small number of the overcrowded hospitals in the enclave are still open.
