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Jordanian soldiers on an air drop mission over the Gaza Strip

Photo: Jehad Shelbak / REUTERS

The federal government is mobilizing the Bundeswehr because of the worsening situation for the civilian population in the Gaza Strip.

According to SPIEGEL information, the Foreign Office (AA) and the Defense Ministry have agreed in principle that the Air Force should begin dropping urgently needed humanitarian aid over Gaza as quickly as possible.

Yesterday, the Foreign Office made a formal request to this effect to the defense department, government circles said.

The plan is for the Air Force to drop relief supplies over the Gaza Strip using Bundeswehr C130 transport aircraft stationed in France.

Since the French have already carried out such flights over Gaza, the air force can benefit from the NATO partner's experience.

Military circles said the crews at the C-130 site in Evreux were already preparing for the mission.

If Berlin gives the green light, things could start in the coming days.

The Foreign Office has long been pushing for Germany to take part in dropping aid supplies for the civilian population.

The first discussions about this took place between Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock (Greens) and Defense Minister Boris Pistorius (SPD) at the Munich Security Conference in mid-February.

Other nations, especially the USA and Jordan, have long been dropping pallets of food and medicine from planes over the Gaza Strip.

The flights are closely coordinated with Israel so that there are no complications in the airspace over Gaza.

In government circles it was said that the air force could pick up the corresponding cargo in Cyprus and launch it from there towards Gaza.

The Air Force also operates a small base in Jordan, which could also be used for so-called “air drops,” it was said.

International pressure has been growing for weeks for Israel to allow more aid deliveries to the Gaza Strip.

The USA also announced that it would build a temporary port so that the area could be supplied with food and other goods from the sea.

However, since the construction will take several weeks, observers believe that dropping relief supplies from the air is urgently needed.

The mission is not entirely without risk.

At the weekend, several parachutes from aid packages did not open properly, and people on the ground are said to have been killed by falling pallets.