The United Nations aid chief Martin Griffiths on Monday said he would be travelling to the Middle East to support negotiations on getting humanitarian services into the blockaded Gaza Strip.

According to NAN, Griffiths said his office was in “deep discussions” with Israel, Egypt and others.

In a statement, he said “I shall be going myself tomorrow to the region to try to help in the negotiations and bear witness.

“I express solidarity with the extraordinary courage of the many thousands of aid workers who have stayed the course and who are still there helping the people in Gaza and in the West Bank,”

A spokesperson for the United Nations humanitarian office said Griffiths was planning to be in Cairo on Tuesday and would travel to other regional locations on a trip expected to last several days.

The fate of aid deliveries and limited evacuations through the only entry to Gaza not controlled by Israel remained in doubt after Egyptian sources said a temporary truce was struck. Still, Israel and Hamas said no was in place.