F1 legend Lewis Hamilton sees aid parcels waiting at Gaza border

Show caption: Formula One driver Lewis Hamilton was given a tour of the Ra…

Visit comes with Israel accused of blocking urgently needed supplies for Palestinians bracing for winter

The National

November 10, 2026

Formula One racing legend Lewis Hamilton visited the Rafah border crossing between Egypt and Gaza on Tuesday, seeing aid parcels piled on lorries as Palestinians brace for another harrowing winter in the strip.

Hamilton was given a tour of the Rafah crossing, one of the few ways for aid to enter Gaza. The other side of the border is controlled by the Israeli military, which has restricted and at times totally blocked the entry of supplies.

The seven-time F1 world champion also toured the Egyptian Red Crescent's aid warehouses in El Arish, said officials in North Sinai. They said he was briefed on how aid is prepared and co-ordinated before being sent into Gaza.

Hamilton's visit comes amid mounting concern over winter in Gaza. On Sunday a sand bank collapsed on to tents in Deir Al Balah, killing five people. The Board of Peace, which oversees the fragile ceasefire in Gaza and to which US President Donald Trump appointed himself as chairman, said Israel's response to Gaza's needs "remains insufficient".

Much of Gaza's population is living in tents after Israel laid waste to its cities during a devastating two-year campaign started by the October 7 attacks in 2023.

Hamilton, 41, is an advocate for humanitarian and charitable causes. In 2021 he founded Mission 44, a charity aimed at ​supporting young people.

Show caption: Hamilton and North Sinai Governor Khaled Megawer talk to mem…

In January he visited an aid packaging site in Gaza dedicated to helping people in the enclave, in what he called a life-changing experience.

"It can be so easy to feel hopeless and like there’s nothing we can do to help," Hamilton said at the time. "I thought that feeling of hopelessness would’ve been what I took away from my visit but it wasn’t."

The Ferrari driver is in fourth place in this year's drivers' championship, which has been won by Mercedes' Italian driver Kimi ​Antonelli with three races remaining.

Hamilton is expected to return to the Middle East this month for the Qatar Grand Prix, followed by the season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix next month.

The two races look set to go ahead after F1 bosses stood down contingency plans to hold a race in Imola, Italy. It is understood that the Italian circuit was told to cease preparations on Tuesday.

Doubts had been cast over the races because of regional tension from the Iran war, and the cancellation of races in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia earlier this year.

Updated:

November 10, 2026, 4:57 PM