Three ships and a barge finally set sail from Cyprus on Saturday following better weather conditions, carrying hundreds of tonnes of food destined for northern Gaza.

Three ships and a barge finally set sail from Cyprus on Saturday following better weather conditions, carrying hundreds of tonnes of food destined for northern Gaza.

This second shipment, which carries hundreds of tonnes, has enough food to prepare more than one million meals, and includes self stable and ready-to-eat items such as rice, pasta, flour, legumes, canned vegetables, and proteins.

The historic opening of the maritime route to Gaza by sea is conducted by World Central Kitchen and Open Arms, in close partnership with the United Arab Emirates, and the support of Cyprus.

By opening this maritime aid corridor with Open Arms and Cyprus, the UAE and World Central Kitchen are able to scale humanitarian efforts in Gaza.

To date, World Central Kitchen has provided more than 43 million meals by land, air, and sea to Palestinians facing starvation.

A Cyprus Coast Guard patrol boat approaches the Guinea-Bissau-flagged cargo ship bound for the Gaza Strip. AFP

The UAE has delivered 26,000 tonnes of urgent supplies, including food, water, and medical items, dispatched through 229 flights, 19 airdrops, 1,035 trucks, and three ships.

While this initiative is getting desperately needed food to the Palestinians, the opening of land crossings remains paramount to avert famine.

Meanwhile, the United Nations said four of its military observers were wounded Saturday when a shell exploded near them in southern Lebanon, where Israel and the Hezbollah movement trade regular cross-border fire.

While this initiative is getting desperately needed food to the Palestinians.

The United Nations Truce Supervision Organisation (UNTSO) did not identify the source of the shelling but Lebanon’s official National News Agency blamed Israel.

“This morning four UNTSO military observers on a foot patrol along the Blue Line (demarcating the border with Israel) were injured when a shell exploded near their location,” UNTSO said.

“The targeting of peacekeepers is unacceptable,” it said in a statement, adding that they were taken to hospital for treatment and an investigation launched into the origin of the explosion.

Agencies