US State Department Deputy Spokesperson Vedant Patel stated on Monday that "the United States raised with Israel the incident of protesters blocking the way of aid trucks heading to Gaza," adding that "humanitarian aid to the area should not be hindered." Israeli protesters intercepted aid trucks heading to Gaza today, throwing packages of food onto the road in the latest incident of a series occurring at a time when Israel has pledged to allow humanitarian supplies into the besieged area without interruption. In another context, Patel indicated that "the change in Russia's defense minister is another sign of Russian President Vladimir Putin's desperation to continue his invasion of Ukraine."