The Russian Ministry Emergency Situations said on Friday that it would send two aircraft to Egypt at the instruction of Russian President Vladimir Putin to deliver 28 tonnes of humanitarian aid to people in the Gaza Strip.
"Two aircraft of the Russian Emergencies Ministry will deliver 28 tonnes of humanitarian aid for the population of the Gaza Strip <…> Russia's humanitarian aid will be transferred to the Egyptian Red Crescent Society for its further delivery to the Gaza Strip," the ministry said in a statement, adding that the shipments include medical aid, among other things.
In October, the ministry's aircraft delivered 27 tonnes of food products to people in the Gaza Strip, the statement added.
On October 7, Palestinian group Hamas launched a surprise large-scale rocket attack against Israel from the Gaza Strip and breached the border, killing and abducting around 200 people in neighboring Israeli communities.
Israel launched retaliatory strikes and ordered a complete blockade of the Gaza Strip, home to more than 2 million people, cutting off supplies of water, food and fuel. The blockade was later eased to allow trucks with humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip. The escalation of the conflict has resulted in thousands of people killed and injured on both sides.