Cyprus's president proposed today, Thursday, the opening of a maritime corridor to help enhance the delivery of aid to Gaza in a plan he said could be implemented quickly, although diplomats noted it faces challenges. Under the plan presented by President Nikos Christodoulides at a humanitarian assistance conference in Paris, aid would be transported by sea to Gaza from the island of Cyprus, the closest EU member state located about 370 kilometers away in the Mediterranean Sea.
Christodoulides stated regarding the 25-page proposal, "We hope to implement it immediately." The plan aims to enhance the capacity to deliver humanitarian relief to the Gaza Strip beyond the limited deliveries through the Rafah crossing between Egypt and the Palestinian territory since Israel began its air and ground assault on Gaza.
Diplomats warned that the plan faces logistical, political, and security challenges as well. The construction of port infrastructure off the coast of Gaza began in 2016 but was later abandoned. There was no immediate comment from Israel on the Cypriot proposal.
President Christodoulides mentioned that the operations center would be located in Larnaca, southern Cyprus, where there is a port and an airport, and a coordination center already exists with 33 countries. The port can accommodate 200,000 tons of humanitarian aid, allowing for the transfer of 2,000 tons of aid per ship.
He added that humanitarian aid would arrive in Cyprus to be transported by ships subject to daily inspections by a committee involving Israel. Once the convoys are loaded, naval vessels would follow them to a designated area off the Gaza coast, from where they would be directed to a safe and neutral area.
Christodoulides indicated that the European Commission, Greece, France, and the Netherlands are keen to participate. Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis mentioned, "We need to identify an area in southern Gaza to establish port infrastructure... If these conditions are met, Greece will be ready to assist with navy ships." Diplomats have also noted that France has proposed further developing the Cypriot proposal and expanding the maritime corridor to evacuate seriously injured individuals to hospitals on ships in the Mediterranean off Gaza. An Israeli official stated this week that these discussions are "still ongoing."
