TASS, October 19. An IL-76 aircraft of the Russian Ministry for Emergency Situations carrying humanitarian aid for the population of the Gaza Strip has landed at the El Arish airport in Egypt, TASS reports.

The plane has touched down at El Arish, the nearest Egyptian airport to the border with Palestine, and is being prepped for unloading. After the cargo is transferred to the Egyptian Red Crescent, the humanitarian aid will go to the Gaza Strip.

The plane departed from the Zhukovsky Airport in the Moscow Region, carrying 27 tons of food, including flour, sugar, rice and alimentary products. The delivery comes by order of the Russian president and on instructions from the Russian government.

Tensions flared up again in the Middle East on October 7 when militants from the radical Palestinian movement Hamas staged a surprise attack on Israeli territory from the Gaza Strip. Hamas described its attack as a response to the aggressive actions of Israeli authorities against the Al-Aqsa Mosque in the Old City of Jerusalem. Israel announced a total blockade of the Gaza Strip as it has been delivering rocket attacks on Gaza as well as some districts in Lebanon and Syria. Clashes are also taking place in the West Bank.