Israel has said that it “welcomed” the inauguration of the maritime corridor from Cyprus to the Gaza Strip aimed at boosting humanitarian aid to the embattled Palestinian enclave. “The Cypriot initiative will allow the increase of humanitarian aid to Gaza,” Israeli Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Lior Haiat said on Friday in a statement, without specifying the time frame for the arrival of the first shipment. Haiat noted that Israel will control the entry of aid into Gaza by “conducting security checks in accordance with Israeli standards”.

During a visit to the Cypriot port of Larnaca, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said on Friday that it is hopeful that the maritime corridor for providing humanitarian aid to Gaza would open this Sunday, according to a press release by the Cypriot Interior Ministry.