logo
episode-header-image
May 2025
15 m

The difficulties of getting aid into Gaz...

Bbc World Service
About this episode

After cutting off the supply of aid to Gaza for more than two months, Israeli officials have allowed some trucks to enter. But despite over a hundred aid trucks carrying essential products like flour and baby food into Gaza, the United Nations says it’s only a “drop in the ocean”. There have also been significant delays to distributing the aid, lasting days in some cases.

The UN estimates that one in five Gazans face starvation and that an average of 600 trucks a day are needed to start tackling the humanitarian crisis there.

From Jerusalem, the BBC’s Middle East Correspondent Yolande Knell explains why Israel has started to allow aid into Gaza and how much has got through so far. We hear what it’s like in Gaza right now and aid workers from Médecins Sans Frontières and the International Committee of the Red Cross tell us about the challenges they are facing when distributing aid to Palestinians on the ground.

Instagram: @bbcwhatintheworld Email: whatintheworld@bbc.co.uk WhatsApp: +44 330 12 33 22 6 Presenter: William Lee Adams Producers: Julia Ross-Roy, Chelsea Coates and Emily Horler Editor: Verity Wilde

Up next
Yesterday
How yaba swept across East Asia
The Golden Triangle, a border region of Thailand, Myanmar and Laos is the world’s most active production zone for synthetic drugs like methamphetamine. Synthetic drugs are made from chemicals, instead of plants. But yaba - which has been around for decades and is a mix of caffein ... Show More
8m 56s
Oct 8
China’s renewable energy takeover
Renewables are now the world’s leading source of electricity and China has boosted its solar and wind capacity more than the rest of the world combined. But it’s also one of the world’s biggest polluters and is thought to be behind 30% of global emissions. So what's behind the co ... Show More
8m 54s
Oct 7
Too young for cosmetic surgery?
A teenager recently died in Mexico, reportedly after having cosmetic surgery. Paloma Nicole was just 14. Her dad claims he didn’t know she was having surgery until after she died. BBC Global Affairs Reporter Mimi Swaby joins us to talk through the details.#Lasniñasnonecesitanimpl ... Show More
10m 6s
Recommended Episodes
May 2025
UN humanitarian chief warns of baby deaths in Gaza
The United Nations humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher has told the BBC that 14,000 babies in Gaza could die within the next two days unless aid can reach them. He said baby food brought into the territory by five trucks on Monday was "a drop in the ocean". Israel has blocked all aid ... Show More
47m 27s
Jun 2025
The Struggle to Get Aid Into Gaza
An Israeli-backed system meant to deliver aid and food into Gaza launched last week to scenes of chaos and violence. WSJ's Anat Peled breaks down the new system, and explains why getting aid to the region is difficult and dangerous. Jessica Mendoza hosts. Further Listening: - A F ... Show More
23m 26s
Jun 2025
What's going wrong with aid in Gaza?
Tuesday morning brought another shooting near a food distribution site in Gaza — the third in as many days. This time, more than two dozen people were killed as they tried to collect emergency food aid, according to Gaza health officials and the International Committee of the Red ... Show More
8m 38s
Jul 27
Aid trucks enter Gaza amid widespread hunger
Israel says it's opening limited aid corridors to allow in food and medicine, as Gazan medical officials say at least nine people were killed in Israeli fire while awaiting an aid convoy. We hear from a humanitarian worker in the north of the strip. Also on the programme: Sudan's ... Show More
47m 23s
Nov 2023
Humanitarian crisis in Gaza
As Israel says its troops have entered Gaza City, the humanitarian crisis is stark. Bakeries in North Gaza are closed, according to the UN, and hospitals are nearly out of fuel, says the Palestinian Red Crescent. The UN Secretary-General today called for an unconditional release ... Show More
58m 56s
Jul 23
WHO head says 'man-made mass starvation' happening Gaza
The World Health Organisation's chief, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, has demanded full access for aid into Gaza as well as a ceasefire, describing the situation there as "man-made mass starvation". We speak to a doctor in Gaza City and to a spokesperson for the Israeli prime minist ... Show More
47m 28s
Mar 2025
Gaza Humanitarian Crisis Intensifies
As peace talks drag on, the crisis in Gaza gets worse and worse. It's now two weeks since Israel shut off electricity, food, fuel and medical supplies, in a bid to pressure Hamas to accept an extension of the preliminary ceasefire. Gavin Kelleher is the humanitarian access manage ... Show More
58m 10s
Jul 24
How Seeking Food in Gaza Has Become So Deadly
The suffering in Gaza has reached new depths, and now finding food, which was already scarce, has become a deadly endeavor.Israeli forces have opened fire on crowds of desperate and hungry people who were trying to reach aid sites established by a new and controversial humanitari ... Show More
32m 21s
Sep 2024
Could Israel's striking workers end the war in Gaza? + Headlines
Much of Israel’s economy ground to a halt overnight, during the country’s first major workers’ strike since the start of the war. The strike shut down Israel’s international airport and disrupted banks, manufacturing facilities, healthcare facilities and businesses, as Israelis e ... Show More
20m 16s