With Cyprus the conduit for humanitarian aid being sent to Palestinians caught in the Gaza Strip by Israel’s hunt for Hamas terrorists there, foreign ministers from more than 40 countries will converge on the island to discuss operations and coordination.

Foreign Minister Constantinos Kombos said the meeting is aimed at adding capacity to vessels carrying food and other critical goods, distribution and setting up a special fund to support the international project.

The foreign chiefs will come together on March 21 as he said that the United States, which dropped aid by air, is also building a temporary jetty on Gaza’s seaside for ships arriving with aid that will be checked on Cyprus to make sure there are no weapons.

Kombos said that he would be updating the European Council as to the progress regarding the maritime corridor and noted that “the first shipment of 200 tons has arrived in Gaza and has been safely distributed,” reported The Cyprus Mail.

“A second, larger shipment is ready to depart as we speak. We now have therefore proof of concept, and the aim is to continue, in a systematic and scaled up way, the flow of shipments to Gaza” he added, pointing out Israel has lifted a blockade.

There were reports that as much as 25 percent of Gaza’s population of 2.4 million people was at risk of starving and pressure was being put on Israel to allow food, fuel and other critical materials for those trapped there.

He also thanked Egypt and Jordan “for all the work they have been doing all this time” and pointed out that Cyprus “has been working on this for a long time and the support by the United States and the UAE has been instrumental.”

He said Cyprus was pleased that there is now a “growing international humanitarian coalition,” although Israel hasn’t responded to calls for a cease fire, fearing that would give Hamas time to regroup and attack Israel again as it did in October, 2023 raids.

“We have established a maritime corridor for Gaza, which is a lifeline for the people in Gaza. And to this end, we’ll continue to work with our partners” Kombos added.