Belgium sends 1st batch of humanitarian aid to Gaza

Belgium on Thursday said it sent the first shipment of humanitarian aid to Gazan people.

"The humanitarian situation in Gaza is dramatic," Foreign Minister Hadja Lahbib wrote on X.

Lahbib said the aid for Gaza departed Ostend city on Thursday morning.

The relief supplies include hygiene kits and sleeping bags, she added.

Israel resumed its military offensive on the Gaza Strip Dec. 1 after the end of a weeklong humanitarian pause with the Palestinian group Hamas.

At least 17,177 Palestinians have been killed and more than 46,000 others injured in relentless air and ground attacks on the enclave since Oct. 7 following a cross-border attack by Hamas.

The Israeli death toll in the Hamas attack stood at 1,200, according to official figures.