U.S. food drops over Gaza are criticized as too little and ineffective

A U.S. military plane dropped aid into Gaza

ABOARD C-130 CARGO PLANE OVER GAZA — The scale of the destruction in the northern Gaza Strip is clear from the sky — the streets looked deserted and most buildings have been reduced to rubble.

An NBC News crew aboard a Jordanian Royal Air Force C-130 Hercules dropping ready-to-eat meals was given a rare look at the enclave where hundreds of thousands are "one step away from famine," according to the United Nations and other aid agencies.

As the plane came into range of the target, a back door opened and parachutes quickly deployed and a stream of boxes drifted gently down to earth.

Sixteen pallets with 52,700 meals were dropped Thursday as part of a joint Jordanian-United States operation that comes as President Joe Biden faces growing political pressure at home and abroad to do more to help the Palestinians. The aid drops, which come even as the U.S. continues to supply Israel with military hardware, have been criticized as inefficient by some international aid organizations, and as far too little to make a dent in the ocean of suffering after five months of war.

“I see it as a drop in the bucket,” said Zomi Frankcom, a senior manager at World Central Kitchen, a Washington-based charity founded by star chef José Andrés.

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/gaza-israel-war-us-food-drops-famine-aid-biden-rcna142197

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