European Union officials struck a new deal with Israel to allow desperately needed food and fuel into Gaza, the EU's Foreign Policy Chief Kaja Kallas said on Thursday, reports Al Jazeera.
The agreement could result in "more crossings open, aid and food trucks entering Gaza, repair of vital infrastructure and protection of aid workers", said Kaja Kallas, the 27-member EU's top diplomat.
"We count on Israel to implement every measure agreed," she said in a post on social media.
According to Aid groups, Israeli military restrictions and recurring violence have made it difficult to deliver assistance in Gaza even after Israel eased a complete blockade in May. Experts have warned that the territory is at risk of famine, 21 months into Israel's war.
Kallas said the deal would reinitiate aid corridors from Jordan and Egypt and reopen community bakeries and kitchens across Gaza.
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar acknowledged the deal while attending a conference in Vienna, saying it came "following our dialogue with the EU". He said the deal includes "more trucks, more crossings and more routes for the humanitarian efforts".
It is still unclear whether the aid would pass through the UN-run system or the controversial alternative, US- and Israeli-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), which has triggered widespread criticism after multiple reports that its contractors, as well as Israeli forces, have opened fire on aid seekers.
Leading humanitarian and human rights groups have demanded the immediate closure of the GHF, which they accused of forcing two million people into overcrowded, militarised zones where they face daily gunfire and mass casualties.
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