KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 2 — The first shipment of humanitarian medical supplies for the Palestinian people through Operation Ihsan is scheduled to be sent to Al-Arish International Airport in Egypt via cargo plane at 9pm tomorrow.

Malaysian Humanitarian Aid and Relief (Mahar) president Jismi Johari said it involved two shipments consisting of medical necessities and goods weighing 20 tonnes, to be sent tomorrow, while the second shipment, totaling 30 tonnes, is set to be dispatched on November 10.

He said within a 24-hour period, 45 non-governmental organisations (NGOs) managed to gather a total of 50 tonnes of humanitarian aid worth almost RM7 million.

"The aid will travel from Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) to Al-Arish International Airport in Egypt and thereafter through the Rafah border with the help of the Egyptian Red Crescent Society.

"We hope the items will reach Palestine in three to five days, starting tomorrow, pending approval for entry through Rafah,” he said at a press conference here today on the first humanitarian aid delivery to the Palestinian people in Gaza under Operation Ihsan.

Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Zambry Abd Kadir, and foreign representatives will be present at the aid flag-off ceremony.

Last weekend, some 800 Malaysian volunteers dedicated their efforts to assist in tasks involving receiving, sorting, collecting data, and packing items into boxes at the warehouse of the Malaysian Consultative Council of Islamic Organisations (MAPIM) in Sepang, Selangor. — Bernama