CAIRO — Preparations were underway Sunday to expand humanitarian aid deliveries to the war-ravaged Gaza Strip under a new ceasefire agreement that many hope will mark the beginning of the end of the two-year conflict.
Israel’s defense body overseeing aid operations in Gaza, COGAT, said that the volume of supplies entering the enclave is expected to rise to around 600 trucks per day, as stipulated in the agreement.
Egypt said it is sending 400 aid trucks into Gaza on Sunday, to be inspected by Israeli forces before entry.
Footage from the Associated Press showed dozens of trucks crossing the Egyptian side of the Rafah border, carrying medical supplies, tents, blankets, food, and fuel.
The convoys are heading to the Kerem Shalom crossing for screening by Israeli troops.
Expanding Israeli offensives and aid restrictions have triggered a severe hunger crisis, with famine reported in parts of the territory.
The United Nations said it has about 170,000 metric tons of food, medicine, and other relief materials ready to enter once Israeli approval is granted.
Abeer Etifa, spokesperson for the World Food Program, said workers were clearing and repairing roads in Gaza on Sunday to facilitate aid delivery.
The future of the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) — an Israeli- and U.S.-backed contractor that replaced the U.N. aid operation in May — remains unclear.
Several Palestinians said the group’s food distribution sites in Rafah and central Gaza were dismantled following the ceasefire deal.
GHF had been presented by Israel and the U.S. as an alternative system to prevent Hamas from seizing aid.
However, its operations were plagued by chaos, and hundreds of Palestinians were killed by Israeli gunfire while approaching its sites.
The Israeli military said its troops fired warning shots to control crowds.
A GHF representative said in a statement that “temporary closures” of some sites may occur during the transfer of hostages to Israel but insisted there was “no change to our long-term plan.”
The U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA), which has around 6,000 trucks of aid waiting in Egypt and Jordan, said it has not yet received clarity on its role in the expanded relief effort.
Spokesperson Jonathan Fowler said the agency is “standing ready” to contribute and has sufficient food supplies for Gaza’s population for three months.
Israeli officials believe about 20 of the 48 hostages held by Hamas and other Palestinian factions are still alive, with all expected to be released Monday.
Gal Hirsch, Israel’s coordinator for hostages and missing persons, told families in a message obtained by the Associated Press that preparations were underway to receive the hostages.
Hospitals are ready to admit survivors, while deceased captives will be transferred to Israel’s Institute of Forensic Medicine for identification.
An international task force will work to locate the bodies of those not returned within 72 hours, Hirsch said.
U.S. President Donald Trump, who brokered the ceasefire deal, is scheduled to arrive in Israel on Monday.
He will meet families of the hostages and address the Knesset before traveling to Egypt to co-chair a “peace summit” with Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi, alongside regional and international leaders.
The summit aims to “end the war in Gaza, enhance efforts to bring peace and stability to the Middle East, and usher in a new phase of regional security,” according to the Egyptian presidency.
The timing for the release of roughly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners under the deal has not been announced. The group includes 250 people serving life sentences and 1,700 detainees from Gaza held without charge.
Dr. Mounir al-Boursh, head of Gaza’s Health Ministry, urged Israel to release detained medical personnel and return the bodies of doctors who died in custody.
Palestinians continued to move back into areas vacated by Israeli troops on Sunday, many returning to homes reduced to rubble.
Satellite images analyzed by the Associated Press showed a line of vehicles traveling north to Gaza City along Al Rashid Street on Saturday, with tents visible near the marina, where displaced families have been living to avoid bombardment.
Armed police from Gaza’s Hamas-run Interior Ministry were seen patrolling streets and escorting aid trucks in both Gaza City and southern areas.
Health authorities said 233 bodies were recovered since the truce began Friday.
Many residents were able to retrieve remains of relatives who had been trapped under debris for months.
Hospitals, meanwhile, are running short on supplies — including body bags.
The escalation began on Oct. 7, 2023, when Hamas-led militants launched an attack on southern Israel, killing about 1,200 people and taking 250 hostages.
Israel’s ensuing offensive has killed more than 67,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, which says roughly half of the victims were women and children.
The war has displaced nearly 90% of Gaza’s 2 million residents and devastated much of its infrastructure.
While the ceasefire has brought temporary relief, uncertainty remains over Gaza’s governance and the future of Hamas.
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said he has ordered preparations to begin destroying Hamas’ tunnel network “through an international mechanism under U.S. supervision” once the hostages are released. — Agencies
