EC dispatches team to strengthen Gaza aid effort

The European Commission has so far sent five officials to Cyprus, in the context of its operational support to the maritime humanitarian corridor to Gaza initiative, a spokesperson said on Wednesday.

“In terms of what we do on the ground, we've deployed now three civil protection experts, one liaison officer and one transport expert”, the spokesperson for humanitarian aid affairs, Balazs Ujvari said responding to questions by journalists.

The five officials will be in Cyprus “helping the logistical side of the ongoing efforts” he added. He pointed out that, as stated by President Ursula von der Leyen on Tuesday, the Commission is “looking into providing additional aid via the EU Civil Protection Mechanism.”

Head spokesperson Eric Mamer clarified that through the EU Civil Protection Mechanism, aid can be requested and then collected from donors, before being distributed.

Ujvari pointed out that the mechanism has been activated a number of times so far, for example through a request by Cyprus for shelters and sleeping bags, a request by Egypt for medical devices, a request by the WHO which asked from EU member states to provide medical experts and some medical items, and a request by the International Red Cross - Red Crescent for reverse osmosis units. The latest request, he added, came from World Food Program of the UN.