In One Image: War, Peace, and Something in Between. By Saher Alghorra.
This is not how humanitarian aid is meant to be distributed, yet it’s the harsh reality unfolding in Gaza. Despite a cease-fire taking effect two days prior, this particular aid convoy quickly encountered significant trouble.
Gaza remains gripped by profound hunger. The metal caging and barbed wire on the trucks offered protection for the drivers, but proved useless for the desperately needed cargo. In the frenzied scramble for food, young men often found themselves at an advantage, while children struggled to find any opening they could to reach supplies.
Many people eventually staggered away, burdened by their newly acquired provisions; at least one resourceful individual even brought a donkey to assist. This scene of chaos, unfolding against a backdrop of war-torn ruins, starkly illustrated that the path forward for Gaza, much like this convoy, will be fraught with difficulty.
Indeed, war in the Gaza Strip has paused, and while extensive negotiations are still required before any semblance of lasting peace can truly settle on the Palestinian enclave, the new cease-fire did initially spark hopes for a significant increase in aid, aiming to alleviate the pervasive hunger.
However, it quickly became clear that this relief wouldn’t come easily. On Sunday, October 12, just two days after the deal between the Israelis and Hamas took effect, a 10-truck aid convoy departed through the Kerem Shalom crossing from Israel into Gaza. Its precious cargo included flour, rice, lentils, beans, yeast, salt, and other essential supplies.
What unfolded next was a scene tragically familiar, mirroring the desperate scrambles witnessed repeatedly throughout the intense fighting. During the conflict, Israel had often restricted aid from entering Gaza following Hamas’s attack in 2023.
As word spread among Palestinians that the shipment was making its way that Sunday through the Morag Corridor, which connects the Gaza cities of Khan Younis and Rafah, on its way to warehouses, hundreds converged. The strongest among them clambered onto the moving trucks, their blaring horns a futile attempt to deter the desperate crowd. Restraining straps were quickly severed—some men came prepared with knives—and soon, boxes of aid were flying through the air.
By Monday, the United Nations’ World Food Program announced an expansion of deliveries to Gaza, stating that since the pause in fighting, over 280 trucks had entered, with most safely reaching their intended destinations. Yet, that Sunday in the Morag Corridor, it took roughly only 20 minutes for each truck to be completely emptied.
Some voices expressed sorrow over the wasted food as bags burst open, spilling valuable flour and rice onto the ground. Others, particularly older women unable to climb the trucks, diligently set about gathering what they could from the ground, placing it carefully into bags. The enduring image reflects the profound and ongoing struggle for survival in Gaza.