More than 2,400 aid trucks have entered the Gaza Strip since a cease-fire agreement between Israel and Hamas went into effect, according to United Nations officials, as the focus is on rebuilding the area devastated during 15 months of Israeli bombardment.
During the conflict, the flow of aid to the blockaded enclave was severely restricted.
As the deal entered its fourth day on Wednesday, video from Reuters showed dozens of trucks carrying humanitarian aid rolling into Rafah, south of Gaza. In one, Palestinians were seen running after trucks through the city’s destroyed streets as they tried to pick up fallen purple aid bags. In another, they were seen picking up plastic water bottles from the ground, surrounded by the ruins of destroyed buildings.
The UN previously estimated that about 60% of Gaza’s infrastructure has been destroyed, including schools and hospitals. Aid and fuel deliveries were severely restricted during the conflict, prompting international criticism of Israel.
More than 47,000 people have died in Israeli bombings during the war, according to local health officials. During that time, nearly 90 percent of Gaza’s population — nearly 1.9 million people — were driven from their homes and forced to live in tent camps and other shelters, according to the United Nations.
Young men pass a truck loaded with aid in Rafah, south of Gaza.
Under the ceasefire agreement, Israeli officials must allow at least 600 aid trucks, including 50 carrying fuel, to enter Gaza every day during the first six weeks. Half of those trucks will be directed to northern Gaza, where experts have warned of famine.
A senior UN official told Reuters on Wednesday that so far, there have been no legal and regulatory problems in ensuring the entry of aid into the besieged area. Looters and gangs attacked aid trucks during the conflict, which was sparked by a Hamas attack on October 7, 2023, which killed 1,200 and saw around 250 kidnapped.
The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said the aid will also extend to providing food and health care, including opening bakeries, renovating hospitals, repairing water networks and shelters, and reuniting families.
In the central al-Dahra neighborhood of Khan Younis, NBC News captured video of police wearing the uniforms of the al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas, standing on the streets directing trucks and ensuring the safe delivery of aid to the city on Monday.
A member of the al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas, directs aid as it arrives in Khan Younis, south of Gaza.
Abdul Wahab Abdul Raouf Samour, 40, a police officer, was assigned to patrol the streets and facilitate traffic in the area.
“We were told by the Ministry of Interior to put on military uniforms and military suits and go straight to work,” he told an NBC News crew on Monday, adding that Palestinian officials have instructed those assigned to ensure security measures are in place to prevent looting.
“As you can see, we are promoting traffic in the cities, and, God willing, we hope to serve our people more than this,” he added.
Across the enclave, video shot by NBC News shows scenes of buildings covered in ash and streets littered with debris from houses and shops. Some drone footage captured Gaza before and after 15 months of war, showing how its cities are being destroyed.
A crowd gathers behind an aid truck as it enters Rafah, southern Gaza, on Wednesday.
But even the promise of a ceasefire could not protect some Palestinians in Gaza who want to rebuild their lives as Israeli airstrikes continued in Khan Younis on Monday.
When Ahmed Qudra, 35, left his home to buy chicken wings for his seven children at the market, he was killed by Israeli missiles that hit a vehicle carrying soldiers and killed four officers. This attack also claimed the lives of three of Qudra’s children while two others were injured.
“We slept believing that the ceasefire started at 8:30. How would we know things have changed? How did we know that our happiness would turn into destruction?” Hanan, Qudra’s wife, told the NBC News crew through tears.
“On Friday, we asked him to bring us chicken wings. He said he would. Now he is gone,” said the son, Adel, 12, who saw his father and siblings killed.
This article was originally published on NBCNews.com