Text / Modern Logistics News all-media reporter Zhu Ruiying
On May 7, local time, according to the latest report by Israeli military radio, the Israeli army has taken control of the Palestinian side of the Rafah crossing in the Gaza Strip. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) subsequently issued a statement confirming that it had captured part of the Gaza side of the Rafah crossing.
(Source: Associated Press)
Among them, the 401st Armored Brigade of the Israeli Army captured the part of the Gaza side of the Rafah crossing on the morning of the 7th. The Salah al-Din road, which currently connects the southern and northern Gaza Strips and connects the Rafah crossing to eastern Rafah, has been cut off by Israeli forces.
On May 7, President Xi Jinping was invited to visit France, and the two heads of state had an in-depth exchange of views on the situation in the Middle East and issued the Sino-French Joint Statement on the Situation in the Middle East. The statement stated that the two Heads of State called for the effective opening of all necessary crossings and crossings for the rapid, safe, sustainable and unhindered delivery of humanitarian assistance throughout the Gaza Strip. The two Heads of State stressed the importance of strengthening the coordination of international humanitarian efforts.
The existential crisis in Gaza has intensified
On the evening of May 5, local time, the Israel Defense Forces issued a statement saying that earlier that day, with the cooperation of the Israeli General Directorate of National Security, the Israeli army airstriked a facility of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East, and said that the Palestinian Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) was using it as a command and control center.
(Source: Associated Press)
The Israeli army said in a statement that the facility, located in central Gaza, coordinates the supply of weapons and other supplies to Hamas militants in underground tunnels in the Gaza Strip. On the evening of the 6th local time, the Israeli army continued to launch air strikes and artillery bombardments on Rafah, while the Palestinian Islamic armed group also fired rockets at Israel.
On May 7, the head of the United Nations World Food Programme, Cindy McCain, said that after nearly seven months of war between Israel and Hamas, northern Gaza had entered a "total famine," according to the Associated Press.
Cindy McCain said on the 5th that Israel has imposed severe restrictions on the delivery of humanitarian supplies to this area, which has long relied on external food aid, which has pushed civilians in Gaza to the brink of collapse. Famine in Gaza is spreading southward, she said.
The Gaza Strip is fraught with difficulties in transporting supplies. In early April, seven World Central Kitchen humanitarian workers delivering supplies to the Gaza Strip were killed in Israeli airstrikes. Israel is under increasing pressure from its main ally, the United States, and other countries to allow more aid into Gaza, particularly by opening more land crossings to deliver aid by truck as most efficiently.
(Source: Associated Press)
Aid groups say that supplies from the United States and other countries by air and sea are not enough to meet the needs of Gaza's 2.3 million people, and that more and more Gazans have reached the point of malnutrition, stunting the growth of children and even dying.
The Israeli occupation of the Rafah crossing poses a direct threat to the lives of the local population. In particular, the Israeli side has closed another Kerem Shalom crossing, which is used for the transport of aid and commodities, for four consecutive days. The humanitarian crisis in Gaza will thus be further exacerbated.
In November last year, the Chinese government reportedly sent 40 truckloads of emergency humanitarian supplies to the Gaza Strip. On March 27 this year, 450 tons of rice donated by China arrived in Port Said, Egypt. On April 18 and April 19, two batches of new Chinese aid to Palestine, including tents, blankets, cotton clothing, medical supplies and flour, arrived at Arish Airport and Port Said in Egypt, and will be transported to the Gaza Strip through the Rafah port.
The Palestinian-Israeli conflict warns of emergency logistics support
The tragic situation in Gaza in the new round of Palestinian-Israeli conflict has profoundly demonstrated the importance of emergency supply corridors. Previously, in the Russian-Ukrainian war, the "inability to keep up" logistics support and the "insufficient" supply materials were important reasons for Russia's shift from "blitzkrieg" to "tug-of-war".
Since the annexation of Crimea to Russia in 2014, the United States and Western countries have imposed comprehensive sanctions on Russia, and Russia's economic development has been seriously sluggish.
After the outbreak of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, Russia's supply and maintenance capabilities have been seriously affected by key attacks on material support nodes, fragile and easily destroyed material supply channels, and the scale of material reserves is obviously insufficient, and the operation process has been seriously delayed.
(Source: Associated Press)
"Before the soldiers and horses move, grain and grass first" directly points to the importance of system support. At present, various emergencies and crises are increasingly challenged, and natural disasters, accidents, public health incidents, and regional conflicts pose severe tests to global emergency management capabilities.
China is a country prone to natural disasters and geopolitical frictions, but as the world's largest logistics market, it has a huge transportation network and logistics infrastructure. Various modes of transportation such as road, railway, aviation and water transport are connected to each other, and the material foundation of emergency logistics is solid.