NICOSIA, Cyprus (AP) — Another top donor to the U.N. agency aiding Palestinians said Saturday that it would resume funding, weeks after more than a dozen countries halted hundreds of millions of dollars of support in response to Israeli allegations against the organization.

Sweden changed its decision as a boat carrying large amounts of humanitarian assistance was getting ready to depart from Cyprus to Gaza following the creation of a maritime route by global donors to provide aid to the blockaded region which is suffering from serious food shortages after five months of conflict.

According to the president of Cyprus, Nikos Christodoulides, the ship will set sail in the next 24 hours. José Andrés, the founder of World Central Kitchen, confirmed that all required permits, including those from Israel, have been obtained and any delays in departure are mainly due to weather conditions.

The decision to provide funding by Sweden came after the European Union and Canada made similar choices. The United Nations agency, UNRWA, is cautioning about the possibility of its collapse, which would further worsen the dire situation for Gaza’s over 2 million inhabitants, who are already in desperate need of medical and other aid.

Swedish development minister Johan Forssell expressed concern over the dire humanitarian conditions in Gaza and the urgent needs of its people. He also acknowledged that UNRWA has agreed to increase transparency and enforce stricter controls. Sweden has pledged to provide half of its promised $38 million funding for this year to UNRWA, with additional contributions to follow.

Israel had alleged that 12 employees out of thousands working for UNRWA were involved in the Hamas assaults on October 7, which resulted in the deaths of around 1,200 individuals and the capture of approximately 250 others. As a result, several countries, including the United States, promptly halted their funding of UNRWA, which amounted to $450 million, almost half of its annual budget. The United Nations has initiated inquiries into the matter, and UNRWA has stated its willingness to undergo external audits in order to regain the support of donors.

Prior to the start of Ramadan, the famine-stricken inhabitants of Gaza raced to retrieve rations of food donated by American and Jordanian military aircraft, a delivery strategy that is deemed significantly lacking by relief organizations when compared to ground deliveries. However, due to Israeli limitations and safety concerns, the amount of aid trucks entering Gaza each day has significantly decreased from the pre-war average of 500.

As the aid parachuted down, individuals hurried through the destroyed neighborhoods of Gaza City. “I have children who have lost their parents, I need to provide for them!” exclaimed one woman.

Another citizen named Momen Mahra expressed that the topic of aid is harsh and not well-received, stating that a majority of the aid dropped from the air ends up in the ocean. He further stated, “We desire more efficient strategies.”

The military of the United States stated that they dropped over 41,000 “meal equivalents” and 23,000 water bottles via aircraft into northern Gaza, which is the most challenging area to reach in the territory.

The Health Ministry in Gaza reported that the death toll from malnutrition in the ongoing war has now reached 25, with the recent addition of two individuals, including a 2-month-old infant. According to Ministry spokesperson Ashraf al-Qidra, this count only includes those who were brought to hospitals for treatment.

The ministry stated that a minimum of 30,878 Palestinian individuals have lost their lives since the conflict started. They do not distinguish between civilians and fighters in their counts, and report that women and children account for 66% of the deaths. The ministry is associated with the government controlled by Hamas, and their statistics from past wars have closely aligned with those of the United Nations and unbiased professionals.

The establishment of a shipping route in the sea, in addition to the use of airdrops, demonstrated a growing sense of dissatisfaction with the dire situation in Gaza and a newfound willingness to find ways to bypass Israeli limitations. The European Union, alongside the United States, United Arab Emirates, and other relevant nations, supports this sea corridor. The European Commission has announced the involvement of U.N. agencies and the Red Cross as well.

On Saturday, President Joe Biden shared his belief that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s approach to the conflict with Hamas in Gaza is causing more harm than good to Israel. During an interview with MSNBC’s Jonathan Capehart, the American leader expressed his endorsement of Israel’s right to retaliate against Hamas following the Oct. 7 attack, but also urged Netanyahu to consider the loss of innocent lives resulting from these actions.

The vessel owned by the humanitarian organization Open Arms from Spain will be embarking on a trial voyage to test the route, possibly as soon as this weekend. The ship has been stationed at Larnaca port in Cyprus. While Israel has expressed support for the maritime corridor, they have noted the need for security checks.

Oscar Camps, the founder of Open Arms, announced that the vessel transporting a barge carrying 200 tons of rice and flour would take approximately two to three days to reach a secret destination, where World Central Kitchen is currently constructing a pier to receive the shipment.

Biden has revealed plans to construct a short-term dock in Gaza in order to facilitate the transport of assistance. This highlights the fact that the U.S. must navigate around Israel, its primary ally in the Middle East and the largest recipient of U.S. military aid. Israel claims Hamas has taken control of certain aid shipments.

Officials from the United States predict that it will take several weeks for the pier to become operational. Avril Benoit, the executive director of the American branch of the medical charity Doctors Without Borders, denounced the U.S. strategy as a major distraction from the actual issue at hand: Israel’s excessive and unequal military attacks and restrictive blockade.

According to Sigrid Kaag, the U.N.’s leader in handling humanitarian aid and rebuilding efforts in Gaza, relying on air and sea transportation is not sufficient to compensate for the lack of accessible land routes for supplies.

However, attempts to achieve a cease-fire before the start of Ramadan seem to have come to a halt. On Thursday, Hamas announced that its representatives had departed from Cairo and will not return until next week.

Mediators from around the world had aimed to ease the current crisis by implementing a six-week pause in hostilities. During this time, it was expected that Hamas would release Israeli hostages, Israel would release Palestinian prisoners, and aid organizations would be granted entry to Gaza to provide much-needed assistance.

It is reported that Palestinian extremist groups have taken approximately 100 people as hostages and are also in possession of the bodies of 30 individuals who were captured during the October 7 assault. A November ceasefire that lasted a week resulted in the release of several dozen hostages.

The state media in Lebanon reported that an Israeli airstrike on a house in the southern town of Khirbet Selm resulted in five fatalities and at least nine injuries.

Frequent confrontations have occurred within the Lebanon-Israel border region, involving the Lebanese militant organization Hezbollah and Israeli military personnel over the last five months.

Approximately 300 individuals have lost their lives due to Israeli attacks in that location. The majority of these casualties were combatants belonging to Hezbollah and other affiliated groups, with a smaller number being 40 civilians. On the other hand, at least nine soldiers and 10 civilians on the Israeli side have also been killed.

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