Agencies prepare to bring aid to starving people in Gaza as ceasefire appears to hold

Unicef says ‘humanitarian crisis continues’ and expects to scale up aid deliveries on Sunday

Gaza ceasefire – live updates

Aid agencies are preparing to bring large amounts of vital aid to starving people in Gaza this weekend, as a ceasefire between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas appeared to be holding.

“We have received signals that tomorrow will be the day that the scale-up [in aid deliveries] begins in earnest under the ceasefire,” said Tess Ingram, a spokesperson for the UN agency for children, Unicef.

“The stakes are really high,” said Ingram, speaking by phone from Gaza. “Even though we have a ceasefire – which means the bombardment stops – the humanitarian crisis continues. We still have a famine to fight and diseases are spreading, so we really need that scale-up to happen quickly and efficiently.”