I wrote this piece from the heart of the ongoing famine in Gaza and the chaos orchestrated by the Israeli occupation to make life in Gaza unbearable.

The humanitarian situation here has become catastrophic, with a severe shortage of basic necessities driving prices to unprecedented and unimaginable levels.

As the genocide in the Gaza Strip continues into its second year, Palestinian civilians endure an unprecedented humanitarian crisis exacerbated by a suffocating Israeli blockade. In this harsh reality, the drop of aid supplies from aircraft has been promoted by some states as an urgent humanitarian measure. In truth, however, these operations function as a propaganda shield, masking an international failure and complicity in Israel’s policies of starvation and siege. This article examines the actual impact of these aid efforts and reveals how they are used as political and military tools to reinforce Israeli dominance rather than relieve hunger.

Airdropped aid: lifeline or deadly trap?

Under the guise of humanitarian relief, aircraft from nations including the US, France, and Jordan deliver small food parcels over northern and central Gaza. While media outlets depict these drops as lifelines, the amount offered is insufficient even for a single family. Reports from the United Nations and the World Food Program reveal that the total aid delivered over several months could fit onto a single truck, totally inadequate for Gaza’s deepening hunger crisis.

Worse still, much of this aid is dropped in hazardous areas, close to Israeli military operations, into the sea, or directly onto displaced persons’ tents. Field testimonies confirm that civilians, including children, were killed or injured by falling aid boxes. Renowned human rights organisations such as Human Rights Watch and Doctors Without Borders denounce this method as “ineffective, dangerous and demeaning”, arguing it fails to address the root causes of the crisis. Oxfam likens it to “throwing a straw to someone drowning in an ocean of blood and death”, highlighting its negligible impact amid such devastation.

In a troubling development, the Associated Press revealed that the Israeli military instructed foreign journalists not to film Gaza from the air during aid operations, threatening to halt the drops if filming occurred. This policy signals a deliberate attempt to polish Israel’s image while suppressing visual evidence of the humanitarian catastrophe on the ground.

Engineering starvation: aid as a political and military tool

Total siege and deliberate starvation

Since the conflict resumed, Israel has imposed a complete blockade on Gaza, denying access to food, medicine, and fuel for more than three months. This siege has triggered catastrophic famine, with malnutrition rates reaching unprecedented levels. UN reports document the deaths of dozens of children and elderly people due to starvation, while hundreds of thousands suffer severe shortages of food and safe water. Francesca Albanese, the UN Special Rapporteur on human rights in the Palestinian territories, described the situation as “deliberate starvation amounting to genocide”, emphasising that airdrops do not relieve the international community of its moral and legal obligations to civilians.

Gaza humanitarian foundation: chaos that kills

The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, an American‑Israeli NGO, was introduced as part of Israel’s effort to manage aid distribution. Yet its operations proved disastrous. Tiny food portions were delivered near Israeli troop positions, forcing desperate civilians into chaotic rushes for basic supplies. The resulting disorder turned lethal, with over a thousand Palestinians killed either in stampedes or by Israeli fire aimed at crowds seeking aid. International bodies, including the UN, have rejected GHF as a credible humanitarian actor, asserting its role supports political and military agendas.

Aid trucks: humiliation under the guise of relief

Israel allowed a limited number of aid convoys into Gaza, but the supplies were minimal, barely enough for a handful of families. Rather than facilitate orderly distribution, Israeli forces targeted groups attempting to receive these supplies, turning simple relief into perilous confrontation. Those aid trucks, hailed in broadcast narratives as “precious aid”, became symbols of humiliation, with starving people forced into competition and danger just for a morsel of food under inhumane conditions.

Manufacturing reality: aid as a propaganda tool

The failed US‑backed model

With American backing, Israel tried to establish GHF as a more efficient model of aid distribution. The effort failed dramatically on many fronts. Daily scenes of chaos and casualties at distribution sites, combined with the harrowing images of hunger, turned this mechanism into a political and media liability for Israel and its allies. International investigative reports exposed the disorder surrounding these operations, increasing pressure on Israel to rethink its approach.

Media pressure forces a shift in policy

Faced with mounting global media outrage, Israel adopted a new method of managing aid. It did not return to the previous system overseen by the UN and reliable international agencies. Instead, it implemented a strictly controlled mechanism aligned with military objectives, supported by an aggressive media campaign to improve its image. Aid distribution became regulated geographically and logistically to serve Israel’s strategic interests rather than humanitarian need.

Extending the war via the aid gateway

This new system reveals a strategic intent to prolong the conflict in Gaza. Rather than addressing the humanitarian emergency, aid is used as a means of political and military manipulation, sidestepping negotiation channels and preparing for future operations, such as the anticipated “Chariots of Gideon”. The strategy reflects a long‑term vision to reshape Gaza’s reality to Israeli advantage.

Ongoing blockade: closed crossings and choked lives

Israel continues to seal Gaza’s border crossings, blocking land‑based aid under credible international oversight. Aid trucks remain stalled at crossings while Israel ignores its obligation under international law to allow civilian access to relief. Meanwhile, the Rafah crossing, the only one not under Israeli control, remains shut from the Egyptian side for unclear reasons, despite emergency pleas. This dual blockade deepens civilian suffering, depriving people of essential means of survival.

Media facade: aid in image, famine on ground

Israel has heavily promoted itself as a facilitator of aid, showcasing aerial drops and limited convoys in carefully curated media campaigns. Yet on the ground, reality diverges sharply. Aid is delivered chaotically and humiliatingly; small packages parachuted or delivered in unprotected vehicles spark conflict among starving masses and often end up looted. Meanwhile famine intensifies across Gaza, with millions suffering shortages of food and medicine. Israel bears full responsibility for the unfolding catastrophe.

Toward lifting the siege and restoring dignity

As Gaza enters the 20th month of humanitarian crisis, it is clear that airborne aid is not the solution. It forms part of a deeper problem rooted in siege and deliberate starvation. What civilians need now is immediate opening of crossings, safe land corridors under international supervision and meaningful enforcement of international law. Agricultural paralysis and complicity in Israel’s policies not only kill Palestinians through hunger and bombardment, they degrade them even at the level of survival. The true path forward lies in ending the siege, holding responsible parties accountable and restoring dignity to the people of Gaza.

The views expressed in this article may or may not reflect those of Pearls and Irritations.