US Military Completes Floating Pier for Gaza Aid Deliveries

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Facts

  • US Central Command announced on Thursday that a floating pier intended to ease the humanitarian crisis in Gaza had been anchored to the shore of the enclave, adding that aid deliveries are expected to begin in the coming days.1
  • This comes over two months after Pres. Joe Biden ordered the military to set up the project — at an estimated cost of $320M — as intense fighting and Israeli restrictions limit the amount of food and other basic goods getting into Gaza.2
  • The floating offshore platform where shipments will be unloaded is part of the Joint Logistics Over-the-Shore system, which also includes a causeway to transfer the cargo for aid agencies to distribute them in Gaza.3
  • While Israel has long opposed a seaport for Gaza due to security concerns, a military spokesman said on Thursday that the temporary pier project was a 'top priority,' stressing that the Israeli Navy and the 99th Division were assisting the project.4
  • Food and fuel for Gaza are reportedly about to run out, as aid supplies via the Rafah crossing have halted as Egypt and Israel are at loggerheads since the Israel Defense Forces captured the Palestinian side of the gateway last week. On Wednesday, an Israeli delegation reportedly visited Cairo to settle the dispute.5
  • According to USAID, humanitarian conditions in Gaza are worsening. Nearly a third of children are gravely malnourished, and the entire population — about 2.2M people — is said to be facing food insecurity with a serious risk of famine.6

Sources: 1Washington Post, 2Associated Press, 3CNN, 4New York Times, 5Times of Israel and 6The New Arab.

Narratives

  • Pro-establishment narrative, as provided by Voice of America. Israel must be able to defend itself from terrorist attacks from Gaza or elsewhere, and the US is committed to preventing malicious actors from threatening Israel's legitimate concerns. However, the humanitarian situation in Gaza is rapidly getting out of hand, and the situation must be remedied. The Biden admin. is committed to ensuring the safety and well-being of Palestinian civilians, and this port will be a highly effective way to get aid into Gaza.
  • Pro-Israel narrative, as provided by Jewish News Syndicate. Facing pressure and criticism at home for supporting Israel, notably from its own political base, the Biden admin. came up with this floating pier to show sympathy for Gaza civilians and try to deliver aid without helping terrorists. This operation is short-sighted though. While it may solve the aid and food distribution crisis in the Strip for now, it fails to address the root problem: It's only when Hamas is finally and completely destroyed that all the suffering in Gaza will come to an end.
  • Pro-Palestine narrative, as provided by Middle East Eye. The Biden admin., increasingly anxious over the upcoming election, has resorted to cheap tactics to deny its support for Israel's brutal war on Gaza. Regardless of the spin, Biden has armed Israel, given it diplomatic cover, and refused to call for a permanent cease-fire — all of which incentivizes continued bloodshed. Palestinians are literally starving to death, and Biden would rather wax about cockamamie plans for new aid delivery mechanisms like building a port instead of taking concrete action to deter Israel's criminal behavior — which would be unsustainable without US support.

Predictions