US military is finishing construction of the metal pier worth $320 million to get aid to Gaza
7:34 PM EDT, May 15, 2024, updated: 8:34 AM EDT, May 19, 2024
The US is finishing the construction of the mental pier, which is supposed to reach a beach in northern Gaza and provide humanitarian help in the region.
According to the officials, the pier is approximately 1,500 feet long (the length of five football fields). Biden's administration spent $320 million on the effort to provide Gaza with humanitarian aid. However, the future is uncertain, with more civilians desperately needing humanitarian help.
Biden's gamble
The humanitarian action in Gaza seems to be a gamble for President Biden and his administration since aid delivery teams will have to face unexpected and unpredictable military danger.
Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder, the Pentagon press secretary, disclosed, "In the coming days, you can expect to see this effort underway. And we are confident that we can, working with our NGO partners, ensure that aid can be delivered."
However, Scott Paul suggested that the applied United States proposition is a solution for a nonexistent problem since the aid could have been delivered by land. However, he added, "Like all of the land crossings, it comes down to the consent of the government of Israel." Paul noted, "If Israel is comfortable with allowing the maritime corridor to function ... then it will work in a limited way."
Humanitarian aid as a political game
Foreign policy adviser to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu - Ophir Falk - declared that Israel enabled humanitarian help to the Gaza region and will further allow it to do so. The Israeli army has previously stated there had been no limits on aid, and the discrepancies had resulted from problems with distribution caused by the UN.
The head of the UN World Food Program announced that famine has started in Gaza and goes south as a result of the military attacks. Benjamin Netanyahu asked President Biden to pledge more aid after the Israeli army killed World Kitchen Workers. AP News reports that Israeli officials denied about 70% of aid missions of humanitarian groups that were supposed to help in northern Gaza, which is the area touched the most by starvation.
Another crucial factor stopping the effectiveness of humanitarian help is a fuel shortage. Israeli and Hamas military operations stopped fuel and aid deliveries to Gaza. Jeremy Konyndyk said, "The whole aid operation runs on fuel... So if fuel is cut off, the aid operation collapses, and it collapses quickly."
Significantly, humanitarian aid is supposed to be delivered by organizations such as The UN World Food Program and not the American army. The United Nations, however, is concerned with the Israeli military handling security on the shore.
Source: Fox News, The Guardian