The demonstrators include families of hostages still being held by Hamas, relatives of soldiers killed in action in Gaza, and reservists.
By JNS
Israeli protesters on Sunday converged on the Kerem Shalom border crossing with the aim of preventing aid from passing into the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip.
“Thousands of people are descending on the crossing in order to block the convoys of supplies and aid to Hamas,” according to a statement released on Sunday by the “Order 9” movement.
“There are very large forces preventing us from reaching the site, and allowing the trucks to pass through to the murderous terrorist organization…. No aid goes through until all of the captives are returned,” it added.
For five straight days, protesters from “Order 9” have demonstrated at the crossing, bypassing police checkpoints set up to prevent their arrival.
On Wednesday, the demonstrators reportedly blocked over 100 trucks, some of which were diverted to another crossing between Egypt and Gaza.
(An “Order 8” is the term for the emergency mobilization of an Israel Defense Forces reservist outside the framework of regular reserve duty. Many were issued after Hamas’s Oct. 7, 2023 invasion of the northwestern Negev.)
The demonstrators include families of the 136 hostages still being held by Hamas, relatives of soldiers killed in action in Gaza, reservists rotated out of combat, and civilians evacuated from the northern and southern frontiers.
היום החמישי ברציפות לחסימת מעבר כרם שלום: המשטרה חסמה את הכביש המוביל לכרם שלום. עשרות מפגינים בהם משפחות של חטופים, משפחות של חללים ופעילים של צו 9 צועדים ברגל בדרך למעבר: ״אף סיוע לא יעבור עד שאחרון החטופים יחזור״. pic.twitter.com/iax70U9IlQ
— almog boker (@bokeralmog) January 28, 2024
On Dec. 15, Israel’s Security Cabinet approved the opening of the Kerem Shalom crossing for the transfer of aid into the Strip following intense U.S. and international pressure. All the Israeli crossings to Gaza had been shuttered after the Oct. 7 massacre, with only Egypt’s Rafah crossing from Sinai remaining open.
The latest protests followed previous attempts to block the passage of aid to Gaza from Israel, including on Jan. 9 and Dec. 21. Organizers of the Dec. 21 effort said it was mounted to stop “Hamas trucks” and “Nazi trucks” from entering the coastal enclave.
Hundreds of Israelis block trucks carrying humanitarian supplies towards the Gaza Strip at the Kerem Shalom border crossing, Jan. 24, 2024. Photo by Bashi Darshan/TPS.
Hamas is believed to be stealing much of the aid intended for Gazan civilians and redirecting it to terrorists hiding in tunnels.
The Israeli Defense Ministry’s Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT) said that 260 aid trucks entered Gaza last Sunday, including 139 passing through Kerem Shalom, the most on any single day since the war began on Oct. 7.
Israel's role in the humanitarian aid operation for Gaza is one: Inspecting the aid for security reasons.
Our inspection process is efficient, with us scaling up our capacities to maximize inspection capabilities.There is no limit to the amount of aid that can enter Gaza. pic.twitter.com/lXjIO6Xai1
— COGAT (@cogatonline) January 24, 2024