Israel announces humanitarian pauses in parts of Gaza, airdrops aid for 1st time since start of war

Israeli aerial aid drops into Gaza, July 25, 2025. Photo: (Photo used under section 27A of the copyright law)

The IDF announced that it had carried out an airdrop of humanitarian aid for the first time as part of the ongoing efforts to increase aid into the Gaza Strip. 

While other nations have conducted humanitarian aid airdrops into Gaza throughout the war, this marks the first time that the IDF has done so, in an apparent response to significant international pressure to improve the humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip. The military said the airdrop was carried out “in accordance with the directives of the political echelon.” 

WATCH: Footage From the Airdrop of Humanitarian Aid in Gaza pic.twitter.com/28l2PeAEE7

— Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) July 27, 2025

In an apparent recognition that such a move would not be well received among some of the Israeli population, the IDF’s announcement was only made on its English Telegram and 𝕏 accounts. 

Around the same time, the military also announced the resumption of humanitarian pauses in parts of the Gaza Strip, in order “to increase the scale of humanitarian aid entering Gaza.”  

In accordance with directives from the political echelon, and as part of the IDF’s ongoing effort, led by COGAT, to increase the scale of humanitarian aid entering Gaza, a local tactical pause in military activity will take place for humanitarian purposes from 10:00 to 20:00,… pic.twitter.com/y7gTmtfidj

— Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) July 27, 2025

The IDF emphasized that the humanitarian pauses “will begin in the areas where the IDF is not operating: Al-Mawasi, Deir al-Balah, and Gaza City.” The military said the decision “was coordinated with the UN and international organizations,” and would coincide with the establishment of “designated secure routes,” which would operate “from 06:00 to 23:00 to enable the safe passage of UN and humanitarian aid organization convoys delivering and distributing food and medicine to the population across the Gaza Strip.” 

On Sunday morning, following the IDF’s announcements, Egyptian media reported that aid trucks began driving towards the border with Israel, where they will be inspected before being allowed entry into the Strip. 

The Egyptian Al-Qahera News agency reported the entry of the first aid trucks into the Gaza Strip later on Sunday morning. 

“Humanitarian aid trucks move from Egypt to the Gaza Strip carrying large quantities of food supplies,” the agency reported on its 𝕏 channel. 

President Isaac Herzog praised the “major steps announced by the Israeli leadership and military to strengthen and upgrade the humanitarian response in Gaza.” 

“In coordination with international partners, Israel is doing its utmost to improve the flow of vital supplies through designated corridors, airdrops, and expanded humanitarian zones,” Herzog wrote. 

I welcome the major steps announced by the Israeli leadership and military to strengthen and upgrade the humanitarian response in Gaza — particularly the decision to implement humanitarian pauses to protect civilian lives and allow the safe delivery of aid.

In coordination with…

— יצחק הרצוג Isaac Herzog (@Isaac_Herzog) July 26, 2025

Herzog also called on the UN and its partner NGOs to “do their part” in ensuring aid reaches Gaza residents “without delay.” 

Israel and the UN have traded accusations over the failure of aid to enter the Gaza Strip in recent weeks. With COGAT, the IDF’s unit coordinating activities in the enclave, recently releasing photos and videos showing hundreds of trucks worth of aid sitting on the Gaza side of the border after having been inspected by the IDF. The organization noted that the UN and its partners had not collected the aid. 

On Saturday evening, COGAT and the IDF highlighted the efforts by the UN to collect and distribute that aid after Israeli criticism of the world body online. 

The decision to increase aid into the Gaza Strip was criticized by members of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s cabinet, including National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir, who claimed that he and his political partner, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, had been excluded from the call in which the decision was made because of their opposition to the move. 

“The only way to win the war and return the hostages is to completely stop ‘humanitarian’ aid, occupy the entire Strip and encourage voluntary migration,” Ben Gvir said.

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