Seven-time Formula One champion Lewis Hamilton urged Israel on Wednesday to reopen the Rafah border crossing to permit humanitarian supplies into Gaza from Egypt. His appeal followed worsening conditions in the besieged enclave caused by heavy rains and flooded makeshift camps.
On Tuesday, the British racing driver travelled to the Egyptian border city of el-Arish. He toured a storage facility where the Egyptian Red Crescent had packed boxes of relief items intended for Palestinians.
Hamilton published a statement on social media regarding the urgent situation. "People in Gaza and Palestine are in such urgent need that they could hardly need this aid more than they do right now," he wrote.
"That’s why we really need to put pressure on Israel and work together to make sure this aid reaches them," he added. Hamilton said that storage warehouses in multiple locations held essential provisions, which failed to reach Palestinians because the border remained closed.
An Instagram post on his profile featured images of him meeting Egyptian Red Crescent volunteers and workers. The photographs also showed stationary lorries loaded with food waiting to cross the border.
"The past three years of Israel’s genocide in Gaza is appalling," Hamilton stated. "It’s an injustice for people to being denied their freedom, their safety and their dignity. No human being should be treated as though their life matters less," he said.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu rejected accusations that Israel delayed the entry of winter supplies into the Gaza Strip. The United Nations reported on Wednesday that more than 150,000 tents purchased by humanitarian partners and member states remained stranded outside the enclave, awaiting Israeli permission to enter.
UN humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher stated on Wednesday that waiting for a new Israeli government to form was not an acceptable excuse for delays in delivering essential winter supplies.
