US President Joe Biden on Wednesday said Egyptian leader Abdel Fattah El Sisi has agreed to open the Rafah border crossing into Gaza to allow in 20 lorries with humanitarian aid.
Mr Biden said on Air Force One that he spoke to Mr El Sisi after visiting Israel, where leaders agreed to allow the aid in.
Mr El Sisi agreed to "let up to 20 trucks through to begin with", the US President told reporters.
He said it might take until Friday before the aid made it into Gaza, due to the poor condition of roads.
Mr Biden has finished a short visit to Israel, where he reaffirmed US commitment to Israel's security and called for humanitarian supplies to enter Gaza.
Lorries carrying critical aid to the besieged Gaza Strip have been stuck on the Egyptian side of the border for days, waiting for a diplomatic breakthrough that will allow them to enter.
Earlier on Wednesday, Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he would not allow aid to enter through its borders with Gaza, but would not stop it coming in through Egypt's Rafah crossing.
Mr Biden's trip to Israel was upended after a strike on a hospital in Gaza on Tuesday killed hundreds of people who had been sheltering there.
Palestinians and Arab nations blamed Israel for the blast, but Israel said the strike came from a failed rocket launch by the Islamic Jihad militant group.
A planned summit of Arab leaders in Amman that was set to include Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Mr El Sisi was called off afterwards.
The hospital attack drew worldwide condemnation and protests in major capitals.
Twenty lorries is a limited amount of aid, as Gaza is home to 2.3 million people who have been living under a land, air and sea blockade since 2007, when Hamas took over the territory.
Israel tightened its blockade of the tiny enclave on October 7, after Hamas gunmen launched a surprise attack on parts of southern Israel, killing 1,400 people and taking about 200 others hostage.
Israel responded by bombarding the Gaza Strip with air strikes that have killed about 3,500 people so far, Gazan authorities say.
Israel also blocked the entry of water, electricity, food and medicine, drawing international condemnation and concerns from the UN over a humanitarian crisis.
The aid is set to go to humanitarian organisations for distribution.
Israel had told of concerns that Hamas might confiscate aid.
If that were to happen, Mr Biden said: “It will end.”
Protests erupt after Gaza hospital strike kills hundreds - in pictures
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Protesters gather outside the US consulate in Istanbul, Turkey, in support of Palestinians after an air strike on a Gaza city hospital killed hundreds earlier this week. EPA -
Protesters gather near the US embassy in Tokyo, Japan, to show solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza. AP -
Protesters wave Palestinian and Syrian opposition flags in support of Gaza residents, in the rebel-held town of Atme in Syria's Idlib province. AFP -
Protesters take part in a pro-Palestinian rally near the Israeli embassy in Amman, Jordan, amid global outrage over the air strike on Al Ahli Arab Hospital in Gaza. EPA -
Thousands of pro-Palestinian and Palestinian Americans march towards the Israeli consulate in Chicago during a protest. AP -
Jordanians protest outside the Israeli embassy in Amman following an Israeli air strike which ripped through a Gaza hospital, killing hundreds. AFP -
A rally in support of the people of Gaza after hundreds of Palestinians were killed in a blast at Al Ahli Arab Hospital for which Israel was blamed, though it denied responsibility, in Ramallah in the occupied West Bank. Reuters -
Hezbollah supporters take part in a demonstration after the horrific blast, in southern Beirut. Reuters -
People gather in Baghdad's Tahrir Square to protest against Israel after it bombed Al Ahli Arab Hospital in Gaza, killing more than 500. Aymen Al-Ameri / The National -
Thousands of people in Iraq, Iran and Jordan rallied to show their outrage in the aftermath of the Israeli air strike. Aymen Al-Ameri/ The National -
Protesters set fire to a Lebanese security building outside the US embassy in Beirut. Reuters -
A wounded protester is carried away outside the US embassy in Beirut. Reuters -
Protesters gather in front of the US embassy in Beirut to demonstrate against an Israeli air strike on Gaza's Al Ahli Hospital. Reuters -
The blast drew condemnation across the Arab world, and protests were also staged at Israel's embassies in Turkey and Jordan. Reuters -
People clash with riot police outside the Israeli consulate during a protest to show solidarity with Palestinians, in Istanbul. AFP -
Palestinians protest against an Israeli strike on a hospital in Gaza, in the occupied West Bank city of Nablus. EPA -
Palestinians take part in a protest in Tubas, in the Israeli-occupied West Bank. Reuters -
Pro-Israel counter protesters are kept away by police officers as people participate in a candlelight vigil organised by NYU students in support of Palestinians in Washington Square Park in New York. AFP -
A pro-Israel counter protester wrapped in the Flag of Israel is escorted away from a vigil organised by NYU students in support of Palestinians in Washington Square Park in New York. AFP -
Iranian students and demonstrators throw eggs at the French embassy in Tehran. AFP -
Several people demonstrate in support of Palestine at the Palestinian Embassy in Bogota, Colombia. EPA -
Protesters wave Palestinian and Moroccan flags as they gather in front of Parliament Square in Rabat, Morocco. EPA -
Protesters burn an Israeli flag as they gather in front of Parliament Square. EPA
