By Hani Hazaimeh

AMMAN - The Jordan Hashemite Charity Organisation (JHCO) has dispatched 261 aid convoys to the Gaza Strip since the Israeli attacks against the coastal enclave started December 27, a JHCO official said on Tuesday.

Yesterday, 20 trucks carrying bottled water, sugar, food parcels, blankets, mattresses and medical supplies donated by civil society organisations and Tkiyet Um Ali crossed the King Hussein Bridge, JHCO Spokesperson Mohammad Kilani told The Jordan Times.

In addition, a military aeroplane carrying 10,000 ready meals for the Palestinians in Gaza flew to El Arish Airport in Egypt upon His Majesty King Abdullah’s directives.

The food shipment is the fourth batch of 80,000 ready meals that will be distributed in coordination with the UN World Food Programme.

Also on Tuesday, the Arab Pharmacists Union (APU) dispatched a third shipment of medicine and medical supplies to the Gaza Strip, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

APU President Tahir Shakhshir said the union is also preparing a fourth consignment that will include surgical equipment and wheelchairs.

Meanwhile on Monday, Royal Jordanian (RJ) transported a relief aid shipment from Brussels to Amman on board an RJ freighter as part of an initiative the airline undertook when the offensive on Gaza started on December 27, according to an RJ statement.

The company declared its readiness to carry food and medical assistance to Gazans for free from any of the countries covered by its network to Amman.

The relief aid, worth 70,000 euros, included health kits, blankets, sets for burned patients and medical consumables (plaster, gloves, masks, etc.).

Donated by B-Fast (the Belgian First Aid and Support Team) and the Belgian ministry of health, the shipment will be dispatched to the Palestinian territories through the JHCO, while the World Health Organisation and UNRWA will distribute the items in the Gaza Strip.

In related news, the embassy of Malaysia in Amman announced yesterday that its Malaysian students department (MSD) had donated medicine and clothes for the Palestinians in Gaza.

The contributions, valued at $3,000, were presented to the Jordan River Foundation by MSD Director Sulaiman Ismail, who emphasised the support and solidarity of Malaysians in Jordan for Palestinians suffering in Gaza.

The donations were collected from MSD officers and staff as well as 700 Malaysian students studying in the Kingdom, the statement said.