US to construct aid pier for Gaza “very soon”
The Pentagon announced that the US is set to construct a pier to Gaza “very soon” to enable the delivery of urgent aid to the besieged strip, according to Arab News and agencies on April 23.
For 6 months Gaza has faced a relentless bombing campaign, leaving most of it in ruins.
Amid the destruction, Israel has been accused of using starvation as a weapon of war with residents left behind in northern Gaza reportedly living in famine-like conditions.
Meanwhile, an average of 500 aid trucks are needed per day to meet the basic needs of Gaza’s population.
But nowhere near that amount has been let in, with only 147 trucks entering the Strip on April 11.
UN spokesperson Stephanie Dujarric emphasised the critical need for humanitarian groups to “have safe and sustained access to all people in need across the Gaza strip and the West Bank”.
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In response to this aid deficit, Pentagon spokesman Major General Pat Ryder assured, “We are positioned to begin construction very soon”.
He added that watercraft carrying equipment to construct the peer are on standby in the Mediterranean.
An offshore platform will enable aid to be transferred to smaller vessels, then reaching the mainland via the proposed pier.
The initiative was first introduced in early March by US President Joe Biden, amid Israeli restrictions on ground aid deliveries.
While US officials have maintained that the project will not entail “boots on the ground” in Gaza, a presence is expected for the construction of the pier, with Israeli forces providing security.
Arab News / Agencies
