Five UAE humanitarian convoys carrying 533 tonnes of food and shelter supplies entered the Gaza Strip this week under Operation Chivalrous Knight 3, extending the country’s continuing relief deliveries to Palestinians.The five convoys comprised 66 trucks loaded with food supplies, food parcels and shelter materials, according to the UAE authorities overseeing the operation. The consignments were intended to meet basic needs and support humanitarian relief efforts inside Gaza, where aid agencies continue to report severe pressure on food security, shelter and essential services.
The shipments were assembled through the UAE Humanitarian Aid Logistics Centre in Al Arish, Egypt, which receives, sorts and prepares assistance before dispatching it towards Gaza. The centre is being used as a staging point for the operation’s regular land convoys, with supplies organised for onward movement across the border and distribution to people in need.
The latest movement follows another five UAE convoys that entered Gaza in the previous week with 903 tonnes of assistance aboard 74 trucks. Those deliveries included food supplies, educational materials and shelter items. A week earlier, five convoys comprising 75 trucks had transported 800 tonnes of shelter materials, food and medical aid.
On August 3, another five convoys carried 1,056 tonnes of relief supplies into Gaza aboard 74 trucks, including food, shelter materials and medical assistance. The repeated dispatches illustrate the logistics chain being maintained from Al Arish under Operation Chivalrous Knight 3, which remains one of the UAE’s principal mechanisms for sending humanitarian assistance to Gaza.
The need for shelter aid remains acute. The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said in its August 28 assessment that about 1.98 million people, equivalent to 94 per cent of Gaza’s population, required shelter assistance and non-food items. More than half of the population was assessed as facing critical or catastrophic shelter needs, while 84 per cent of households were experiencing severe constraints in their living conditions.
Food insecurity also remains widespread despite periods of improved humanitarian access. An assessment published in July by the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification found that more than 1.2 million people, or 59 per cent of the population, had faced Crisis-level food insecurity or worse between mid-April and the end of June. It projected that the number could rise to 1.4 million, or 67 per cent of the population, between July and December.
Humanitarian agencies have also warned that operational conditions inside Gaza remain difficult. Access restrictions, insecurity, supply-chain disruptions and shortages of essential materials have complicated the delivery of food, shelter and health assistance. OCHA has reported that restrictions and delays affecting some commodities have continued to hamper services, while funding gaps have reduced the capacity of humanitarian partners in several sectors.
The UAE operation is designed to maintain a steady flow of assistance rather than rely on isolated shipments. At the Al Arish logistics centre, incoming aid is received, classified, packed and prepared for transport, allowing successive truck convoys to be organised according to requirements identified for Gaza.
The five convoys announced on Sunday carried a smaller tonnage than the 903 tonnes delivered by the previous week’s five-convoy movement, but the number of trucks remained substantial at 66. The composition of the cargo was concentrated on food and shelter, two areas identified by international humanitarian agencies as continuing priorities.
Operation Chivalrous Knight 3 has used land convoys alongside other UAE relief activities for Gaza, with the Al Arish hub providing the logistical base for regular movements. UAE authorities say the system is intended to keep supplies moving through the available routes and to prepare consignments efficiently before they are sent towards the Strip.
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