Cypriot authorities say the vessel has been cleared to sail, but there are problems over unloading and distributing the aid D w s Rosie Burchard reports from Cyprus We're flying into Larnica, the cypriot city that's become the new gateway to Gaza.
Aid groups have been busy loading a ship with much needed food for the besieged territory We are ready with almost 200 tons of food ready to be delivered to people of Gaza We have rice, flowers, beans, tuna and other products ready to be distributed in Gaza
The first of its kind sea delivery is part of a new maritime aid corridor, a deal carefully brokered by the cypriot government alongside the European Union, the United Arab Emirates, the United States and others
Cypriot officials check the goods with israeli oversight and monitor the passage from this coordination centre to try and ensure they get to Gaza safely The first thing and where we focus currently is to have a successful first journey And then of course, we already have stored more quantities of humanitarian aid in Cyprus
We hope to establish the corridor to really be in a position to deal with the dire situation on the ground This is not a swift or simple route One of the charities involved is building a makeshift jetty to receive the aid And separately, the US plans to build a bigger temporary pier
The United nations is now warning Gaza is on the brink of famine It's some 400 km from here in Cyprus and the round trip takes days There is a quicker and easier way to get aid in through road crossings Israel says it welcomes this sea corridor and that it's committed to getting food to Gazans
But it's also faced heavy criticism and accusations of blocking aid entry by land The new sea corridor will bring some relief, but given the enormous need at its final destination, it's just a drop in the ocean Let's get more from our reporter Felix Tamzut in Jerusalem Welcome, Felix.
So as that aid ship awaits to set sail, bring us up to date with the situation in Gaza at the moment Well, the situation seems to be ever worsening when it comes to the lack of food and other necessary products Hunger seems to becoming an ever growing problem
And at the same time we have to bear in mind that the israeli attack in the southern city of Rafa looming over On the one hand, we have israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu saying that such an attack is essential for Israel reaching its target of eliminating Hamas, Rafa, is where more than 1 million Palestinians are currently sheltering
On the other hand, there are also reports that such an attack is not imminent One thing is clear The eyes of the world are watching, and this is going to remain the case in the coming days and weeks Okay, so as the muslim holy month of Ramadan begins, what is the atmosphere like there in Israel?
Well, I would say that Israel is currently on eight when it comes to the security aspect of Ramadan The security arrangements in and around Jerusalem and the holy sites is currently being widely reported in the news here, and everyone seems to be talking about whether there will be certain restrictions as the months of Ramadan keeps on going
At the moment, it seems like the situation is relatively calm There have been some clashes between israeli police and Muslims wanting to pray But at the same time, I think everyone's eyes are towards Friday This is when things could get tricky for israeli security services
And everyone is here talking about whether that's going to be the case this coming Friday And what can you tell us about these reports that Israel has killed a high ranking Hamas official who was believed to have been directly involved in the seven terror attacks?
Well, we are talking about Marwan Isaiah Believe that the Agni five has a range much greater than that Essentially all targets in Pakistan and in China are essentially all covered This missile system, the Agni five with a Merv, gives India the ability to do get into a second strike situation with