DUBAI, October 30. /TASS/. Most of the humanitarian aid cannot be delivered from Egypt to the Gaza Strip, Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Nasser Kanani Chafi said.

"Since the beginning of the crisis, Iran has been determined to send humanitarian aid to the residents of the Gaza Strip," the IRNA news agency quoted the diplomat as saying. "So far, less than 100 truckloads [of humanitarian aid] have been sent. This aid is stored in Egypt, it is impossible to send it," the diplomat said, calling for an increase in the volume of humanitarian aid delivered to Gaza. Tehran is "in contact with the Egyptian authorities" on the issue, he added.

Tensions flared up again in the Middle East on October 7 when militants from the radical Palestinian group Hamas staged a surprise attack on Israeli territory from the Gaza Strip, killing residents of Israeli border settlements and taking hostages, including children, women and the elderly. Hamas described its attack as a response to the aggressive actions of Israeli authorities against the Al-Aqsa Mosque on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem’s Old City. Israel has announced a total blockade of the Gaza Strip and has been delivering air strikes on Gaza as well as some parts of Lebanon and Syria. Clashes are also underway in the West Bank.

On October 29, the New York Times quoted a senior US administration official as saying that Israel has pledged to allow 100 truckloads of humanitarian aid into Gaza each day through the Rafah border crossing with Egypt. The Al-Qahera al-Ekhbariya TV channel reported on Monday that 60 such trucks had entered the enclave through the crossing.