Aid drops over Gaza criticized for being dangerous as starvation mounts under Israel offensive

From the sky, a besieged Gaza briefly came into view early Saturday as the military plane opened its back door and a mass of tents could be seen near the Mediterranean coast from a side window.

ABOVE GAZA — From the sky, a besieged Gaza briefly came into view early Saturday as the military plane opened its back door and a mass of tents could be seen near the Mediterranean coast from a side window.

Then, boxes of baby formula, food and other supplies were pushed out the back and parachuted to the ground — a tiny fraction of what is required for the enclave’s population, which is facing a spiraling hunger crisis — delivered by a method that experts say is inefficient, dangerous and in some cases deadly.

On Saturday, a 14-year-old boy named Muhannad Eid died after being struck by an aid package from one of the several airdrops over Gaza, his brother, Muhammad Eid, said.

“This is an aerial humiliation, not aid,” Eid said. “We need protection. We want international protection.”

But with mounting international outrage about deaths from starvation in Gaza under Israel’s offensive and crippling aid restrictions, several countries have started dropping food, medicine and other supplies into Gaza from the sky.