An Etihad Airways cargo plane from the United Arab Emirates landed in Israel on Tuesday evening, said Israel’s foreign ministry.
“The aid will be transferred to Gaza and the [Palestinian Authority] by the U.N. and COGAT,” the foreign ministry said in a statement, according to an AP report.
This was the second such flight of aid for the Palestinians sent from the UAE in the past month. All together, nearly 16 tons of goods have been transferred including around 15 ventilators and other protective equipment to help deal with the coronavirus.
There are no official relations between the UAE and Israel, though the countries have quiet ties and are united with other Gulf states against the Iranian threat.
Meanwhile, Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh stated that he was unaware of the flight.
“If any country, whether Arab or European or international country wants to help us, we welcome that. We don’t say no—as long as it is not conditional and as long as it is fully coordinated with us,” said Shtayyeh, according to Reuters.
The UAE foreign ministry said the United Nations is coordinating the aid.
