2023-10-25 19:37:05
BOGOTÁ (AP) — Colombia will send a military plane loaded with nine tons of humanitarian aid to Egypt on Wednesday followingnoon with the intention of reaching the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip. On the way back, the plane will repatriate a hundred Colombians and Colombian-Palestinians.
The humanitarian aid – which includes water, food such as pasta, oil, grains, hygiene kits and mattresses – sent by the Colombian government will be unloaded and then delivered to the Red Crescent, which will be responsible for storage and coordination for its delivery. , as Ambassador Diego Felipe Cadena, vice minister in charge of Foreign Affairs, explained to the press in Bogotá.
The ambassador added that Colombia will not send fuel, despite the public request made by the Palestinian diplomatic representative in the country, in compliance with a restriction that Egypt has to receive humanitarian aid.
Colombian President Gustavo Petro announced his intention to send humanitarian aid to the Palestinians following a meeting with the Israeli and Palestinian ambassadors on October 19. In addition to his intention to open a Colombian embassy in Ramallah, in the West Bank.
The Boeing 737 aircraft of the Colombian Air Force will stop to refuel in the Dominican Republic and Italy until finally arriving at the El Arish airport in Egypt.
After disembarking the humanitarian aid, the Colombian military plane will head to Tel Aviv, in Israel, to repatriate a hundred Colombians and Colombian-Palestinians who have been evacuated from the West Bank, according to the Colombian ambassador. In recent days, Colombia has carried out two additional flights to repatriate citizens.
Air Force Lieutenant Colonel Juan Manuel Velasco Martínez, in charge of the humanitarian flight, told The Associated Press that on previous journeys they have had some “inconveniences in Israel’s airspace because in their defense they have the airspace intervened and that “It slightly degrades the plane’s navigation system” without affecting its safety.
1698262971
#Colombia #send #plane #humanitarian #aid #Palestinians
