The Dutch armed forces were involved in dropping food and medical supplies near the Jordanian field hospital in Gaza on Sunday in a joint operation with Jordan.

The operation, which was agreed with Israel, was described as a “very important step” by aid minister Geoffrey van Leeuwen. “We will continue our efforts to get humanitarian aid into Gaza,” he said on social media.

The Netherlands is one of a string of countries that has said it will not provide any more aid to the UN’s agency on the ground in Gaza, following Israeli government claims that several workers had been involved in the October 7 attacks.

The Netherlands said at the time the allegations were “too serious to ignore”. This year’s Dutch contribution to UNRWA of €19 million had already been paid. 

The Netherlands will continue to provide help to the civilian population there using other channels, Van Leeuwen said at the time. 

The cost of Sunday’s air drop will be met by the foreign ministry’s aid budget.