Israel agrees to open second crossing to inspect aid trucks

The use of Kerem Shalom should ease the flow and increase the number of aid deliveries. On Wednesday, 80 trucks made their way into Gaza via the Rafah crossing, far short of the 170 vehicles during November’s week-long fighting pause and the 500 trucks prior to Hamas’ attack on Oct. 7. The hope is that opening Kerem Shalom will move figures closer to that pre-war total.

“Keeping Kerem Shalom closed to Gaza is self-defeating,” said JONATHAN LORD, director of the Center for a New American Security’s Middle East program. “Kerem Shalom will potentially become essential if the Israel Defense Forces’ combat operations take it to Rafah. If the Egyptians close Rafah because it gets too hot, the situation goes from catastrophic to worse than catastrophic, and makes it harder for Israel to win.”

Israel’s retaliation against Hamas has led it to Khan Younis, a southern city and the enclave’s second largest, home to key leaders of the militant group. The population has nearly doubled in population from 400,000 before the war, which makes it a civilian-filled battlefield for Israeli troops to navigate. It’s expected that the already devastating humanitarian crisis in Gaza will get worse as Israeli forces push their way into the city and target Hamas operative.

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