Aid ship sets sail from Cyprus to Gaza as hunger worsens five months into war

Aid packages are seen at left, on a platform near to the docked ship belonging to the Open Arms aid group, centre front, as it prepares to ferry 200 tonnes of rice and flour directly to Gaza, at the port in Larnaca, Cyprus (Petros Karadjias/AP)

An aid ship loaded with some 200 tonnes of food has set sail from Cyprus to Gaza, the international charity behind the effort said.

The shipment is a test for the opening of a sea corridor to supply aid to the territory, where starvation is spreading five months into the Israel-Hamas war.