WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. military-built pier designed to carry badly needed aid into Gaza by boat has been reconnected to the beach in the besieged territory after a section broke apart in storms and rough seas, and food and other supplies will begin to flow soon, U.S. Central Command announced Friday.
The section that connects to the beach in Gaza, the causeway, was rebuilt nearly two weeks after heavy storms damaged it and abruptly halted what had already been a troubled delivery route.
“Earlier this morning in Gaza, U.S. forces successfully attached the temporary pier to the Gaza beach,” Vice Adm. Brad Cooper, deputy commander of U.S. Central Command, told reporters by phone Friday. “We expect to resume delivery of humanitarian assistance from the sea in the coming days.”
Cooper said operations at the reconnected pier will be ramped up soon with a goal to get 1 million pounds (500 tons or 450 metric tons) of food and other supplies moving through the pier into Gaza every two days.
The pier was only operational for a week before a storm broke it apart, and had initially struggled to reach delivery goals. Weather was a factor, and early efforts to get aid from the pier into Gaza were disrupted as civilians desperate for food stormed the trucks that aid agencies were using to transport the food to the warehouses for distribution.
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However, before it broke apart the pier had been gradually increasing aid movement each day. Cooper said Friday that the lessons learned from that initial week of operations made him confident higher levels of aid throughout could be attained now.
The U.S. Agency for International Development said in a statement it was working with other U.S. government colleagues and humanitarian partners on the ground in Gaza to ensure that aid from the pier “can safely and effectively resume movement, which we expect in the coming days.”
A large section of the causeway broke apart May 25 as heavy winds and high seas hit the area, and four Army vessels operating there went aground, injuring three service members, including one who remains in critical condition. The damage was the latest stumbling block in what has been a persistent struggle to get food to starving Palestinians during the 8-month-old Israel-Hamas war.
The maritime route for a limited time had been an additional way to help get more aid into Gaza because the Israeli offensive in the southern city of Rafah has made it difficult, if not impossible at times, to get anything through land routes, which are far more productive. Israel’s Rafah military operations and military strikes in northern Gaza had also temporarily halted U.S. airdrops of food.
Cooper said Friday the U.S. also expects to resume those airdrops in the coming days.
President Joe Biden’s administration has said from the start that the pier wasn’t meant to be a total solution and that any amount of aid helps.
After the May 25 storm damage to the causeway, large sections were disconnected and moved to an Israeli port for repairs. In addition, two of the U.S. Army boats that went aground during the same bad weather near Ashkelon in Israel have been freed.
Two other Army boats two beached onto the Gaza shoreline took on a lot of water and sand and the Israeli Navy has been helping with the repairs, Pentagon spokeswoman Sabrina Singh said.
Biden, a Democrat, announced his plan for the U.S. military to build a pier during his State of the Union address in early March, and the military said it would take about 60 days to get it installed and operational. The initial cost was estimated at $320 million, but Singh said earlier this week that the price had dropped to $230 million, due to contributions from Britain and because the cost of contracting trucks and other equipment was less than expected.
It took a bit longer than the planned two months for installation, with the first trucks carrying aid for the Gaza Strip rolling down the pier on May 17. Just a day later, crowds overran a convoy of trucks as they headed into Gaza, stripping the cargo from 11 of the 16 vehicles before they reached a U.N. warehouse.
The next day, as officials altered the travel routes of the convoys, aid finally began reaching people in need. More than 1,100 tons (1,000 metric tons) of aid were delivered before the causeway broke apart in the storm, Pentagon officials said.
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FAQs
US-built pier in Gaza is reconnected after repairs, and aid will flow soon, US Central Command says. The section that connects to the beach in Gaza, the causeway, was rebuilt nearly two weeks after heavy storms damaged it.
What happened to the pier they built in Gaza? ›
On May 28, 2024, the U.S. military suspended aid delivery to Gaza after the floating pier was damaged by bad weather. The Pentagon confirmed that a portion of the causeway was damaged and broken off, and must be repaired before being returned to use.
Where is the US pier in Gaza located? ›
Construction of the port, located in the Mediterranean Sea off Gaza's coast, is anticipated to be completed in early May and, once finished, will facilitate the delivery of an estimated 90 truckloads of international aid into the region and scale to up to 150 truckloads once fully operational, according to the ...
What is the humanitarian pier? ›
Since the earliest days of the conflict in Gaza, the United States has been working relentlessly to increase the amount of assistance reaching Palestinians in Gaza. In an effort to surge urgently needed aid into Gaza, the United States established the humanitarian maritime pier in May.
How is aid getting into Gaza? ›
Land-based delivery remains the most effective way to deliver aid into Gaza, as these roads are the main arteries for aid delivery and so have the greatest capacity. This approach is sustainable, reliable and has been successful in the past.
Is the Gaza pier still open? ›
The United States has permanently shut down the floating pier it constructed earlier this year to deliver aid to the Gaza Strip, the US military announced* on 17 July, bringing to a premature end an ill-fated $230 million project beset from the start by unrealistic expectations and logistical problems.
Why did Israel give up Gaza? ›
The motivation behind the disengagement was described by Sharon's top aide as a means of isolating Gaza and avoiding international pressure on Israel to reach a political settlement with the Palestinians. The disengagement plan was implemented in August 2005 and completed in September 2005.
What is the purpose of the Gaza pier? ›
The pier, announced by President Joe Biden during a televised address to Congress in March, was a massive endeavor that took about 1,000 U.S. forces to execute. Aid began flowing via the pier to Gaza in May, an operation aimed at helping avert famine after months of war between Israel and Hamas.
Did the US build the floating pier in Gaza? ›
The pier built by the U.S. military to get aid into Gaza cost $230 million. It broke apart early on, and critics say it did little to help people in Gaza. LEILA FADEL, HOST: The U.S. military's floating pier on the shore of Gaza cost some $230 million.
Where is Gaza located in the Bible? ›
In the Acts of the Apostles, Gaza is mentioned as being on the desert route from Jerusalem to Ethiopia. The Christian gospel was explained to an Ethiopian eunuch along this road by Philip the Evangelist, and he was baptised in some nearby water.
The temporary pier enables the maritime delivery of international humanitarian aid to Gaza for distribution to the Palestinian people. Humanitarian aid reaches Gaza via the temporary Trident Pier, June 11, 2024.
Why was the pier built? ›
The first seaside piers were built in the early 19th century. They began simply as places to moor boats but soon developed into impressive feats of engineering – places where holidaymakers would go for entertainment and relaxation. The oldest pier in Britain is at Ryde on the Isle of Wight, opened in 1814.
What is the oldest pier in the world? ›
Ryde Pier is an early 19th century pier serving the town of Ryde, on the Isle of Wight, off the south coast of England. It is the world's oldest seaside pleasure pier. Ryde Pier Head railway station is at the sea end of the pier, and Ryde Esplanade railway station at the land end, both served by Island Line trains.
Why is there no aid in Gaza? ›
Gaza is not getting the aid it needs
Some families in Gaza have been displaced several times over. Insecurity caused by the fighting also makes it difficult for humanitarian agencies to safely get the aid to affected populations. The danger extends to humanitarian workers.
Why does Israel target Gaza? ›
The Gaza War started when Israel launched a large military campaign in the Gaza Strip on 27 December 2008, codenamed Operation "Cast Lead" (Hebrew: מבצע עופרת יצוקה), with the stated aim of stopping Hamas rocket attacks on southern Israel and arms smuggling into Gaza.
Why can't you go to Gaza? ›
Do Not Travel To: Gaza due to terrorism and armed conflict.
What happened to the floating pier in Gaza? ›
Shortly after becoming operational in May, the pier broke in rough weather. The Army fixed it and tried again, only to have to remove the pier from the coast two more times due to high sea states. Four months after he ordered its construction, Biden acknowledged the pier hadn't worked as planned.
Why is there no port in Gaza? ›
Port of Gaza City
Currently, Gaza only has a small port in Gaza City, the Port of Gaza. It is the home port of Palestinian fishing-boats and the Palestinian naval police. The Port of Gaza has been under Israeli siege since 2007, when Israel imposed a strict blockade on Gaza.
What happened to the West Pier? ›
The West Pier is a ruined pier in Brighton, England. It was designed by Eugenius Birch and opened in 1866. It was the first pier to be Grade I listed in England but has become increasingly derelict since its closure to the public in 1975. As of 2024 only a partial metal framework remains.
What happened to the greenhouses in Gaza? ›
When the Israelis left Gaza, half of the greenhouses were dismantled by their owners before leaving because they doubted they would receive compensation. Afterwards Palestinians looted the area, and 800 of 4,000 greenhouses were left unusable, while, according to Wolfensohn, most were left intact.
