Gaza floating pier

Gaza floating pier
Causeway connected to Gaza shore, shortly after completion on May 16
TypeBarge landing
CarriesFood aid from Cyprus
LocaleMediterranean Sea off Gaza Strip
Characteristics
ConstructionUS Army, US Navy
History
Construction startApril 6, 2024
Completion dateMay 16, 2024
Opening dateMay 17, 2024

The Gaza floating pier is a floating dock facility created by the U.S. military, after being proposed immediately before U.S. President Biden's 2024 State of the Union Address on March 7, 2024. It was completed in May 2024.

It was constructed by U.S. military forces based on ships offshore of the Gaza Strip, then connected to the shore by causeway, to enable the delivery of maritime cargo for humanitarian assistance to Gaza.[1][2][3][4] The unloading point joins the Netzarim Corridor.[5] The World Food Programme will be responsible for receiving and distributing the aid.[6]

President Biden stated that Israel "must also do its part." He further noted, "Humanitarian assistance cannot be a secondary consideration or a bargaining chip. Protecting and saving innocent lives has to be a priority."[7] Israel will inspect the humanitarian aid in Cyprus before shipping and again at checkpoints in Gaza when it is delivered off the pier. The pier can deliver 150 trucks of aid per day.[8] After its collapse, it was dismissed by Stephen Walt as an expensive PR stunt to sidestep pressuring issues to open its border crossings.[9] The United States denied allegations that Israeli forces had used the Gaza floating pier during the Nuseirat refugee camp massacre or the rescue operation.[10][11]

As of June 2024, the pier has handled thousands of tons of food aid,[12] with Fogbow delivering over a thousand pallets of food.[13] According to the US Central Command as of June 24, 2024, more than 6206 tons of humanitarian aid had been delivered since May 17, 2024.[14] The pier has been dismantled three times because of weather and may not be restored.

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference AP was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference WaPo was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ Cite error: The named reference PBS was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference TheHill was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ "What Israel's strategic corridor in Gaza reveals about its postwar plans". WAPO. May 17, 2024.
  6. ^ Yeung, Jessie (May 17, 2024). "US military starts delivering aid to Gaza through floating pier". CNN.
  7. ^ Borger, Julian (March 8, 2024). "Biden announces US will build pier on Gaza shore for large-scale aid delivery". The Guardian. Retrieved March 14, 2024.
  8. ^ Cite error: The named reference bbc-20240426 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  9. ^ Stephen Walt, 'Biden’s Foreign-Policy Problem Is Incompetence,' Foreign Policy 4 June 2024.
  10. ^ Cite error: The named reference thenational was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  11. ^ Cite error: The named reference faketruck was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  12. ^ Bertrand, Natasha; Liebermann, Oren; Hansler, Jennifer (June 13, 2024). "US military considers temporarily dismantling pier off coast of Gaza for second time due to rough sea conditions". CNN. Retrieved June 23, 2024.
  13. ^ Cite error: The named reference wsj5 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  14. ^ "U.S. Central Command Humanitarian Aid Update". United States Central Command. June 24, 2024. Retrieved June 24, 2024 – via Twitter.