Israel opened a border crossing with the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip on Monday for the first time in two weeks, allowing in a limited amount of humanitarian aid. According to Reuters, the move came ahead of talks in Jerusalem between outgoing Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, who termed Israel's tightened blockade of the Gaza Strip a "war crime".
Israeli Defence Ministry spokesman Peter Lerner said some 30 truckloads of goods entered the Gaza Strip, including meat and powdered milk for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA). "It will last a matter of days. But then what?" UNRWA spokesman Christopher Gunness said of the limited supplies.
Israeli officials said future aid shipments hinged on keeping a lid on border violence which has disrupted a 5-month-old truce, due to expire in December, along the Israel-Gaza frontier. Israel had not allowed UNRWA and other agencies to bring in supplies since Nov. 4.
UNRWA cautioned last week it had run out of food supplies for 750,000 Palestinians in the Gaza Strip because Israel had blocked trucks from entering the territory.
© 2008 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
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