Gaza pier resumed operations after pause due to rough seas: Pentagon

By Diyar Guldogan

WASHINGTON (AA) – The US resumed the delivery of humanitarian aid through the floating pier off Gaza’s coast this week, which was suspended for two days because of rough seas due to the weather, the Pentagon said Wednesday.

"As you know, for two days, the temporary pier was not operational due to high sea states,” Deputy Press Secretary Sabrina Singh told reporters.

"As of June 11th, US Central Command resumed the delivery of humanitarian assistance into Gaza, with more than 500 metric tons of aid delivered to the marshaling area, and today delivered another over 500 metric tons as well to the marshaling area," Singh added.

Singh said that US Central Command assisted in the delivery of more than 2,500 metric tons of humanitarian aid to the shore for onward distribution since the pier became operational on May 17.

She also announced that the one remaining US Army vessel that was beached in Gaza last month was recovered Tuesday night.

On May 25, rough seas affected four US Army vessels supporting the maritime humanitarian aid mission in Gaza. The vessels broke free from their moorings, resulting in two vessels being anchored on the beach near the pier. The third and fourth vessels were beached on the coast of Israel near Ashkelon. On June 7, US Central Command announced that it reestablished the temporary pier which broke apart in rough seas.

Asked whether any aid moved from the marshaling area into Gaza, Singh said: "To my knowledge, since aid has started flowing in from yesterday and today, it's just being collected in the marshaling area, getting ready for when the UNWFP is ready to distribute."

"The good news is that it's on the beach, so it's a step closer to getting to the people who need it most," she added.

The US is working "hand in glove" with the US Agency for International Development (USAID), Singh said, adding: "We are the conduit for getting that aid to the people who need it the most, but USAID has been instrumental in making sure that we are getting those donations from other countries and NGOs as well."

Singh said the World Food Program (WFP) is taking the security measures that "they need to do and the reviews that they need to do in order to feel safe and secure and to operate within Gaza."

US President Joe Biden ordered the establishment of a sea route to deliver food and other aid to Palestinians on March 8 amid Israeli restrictions and months of conflict in the enclave.​​​​​​​

The JLOTS -- the floating pier and the Trident pier -- became operational on May 17 when trucks carrying humanitarian assistance began moving ashore via the pier.

The initial cost of the pier was estimated at $320 million. But the Pentagon said the price had dropped to $230 million due to contributions from the UK and because the cost of contracting trucks and other equipment was "lower than expected."

- Urging de-escalation in region

Turning to Tuesday's phone call between US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and his Israeli counterpart Yoav Gallant, Singh said that Austin urged de-escalation in the region amid the growing tensions along the Israel-Lebanon border.

"We are seeing an increase in activity in the north, and we don't want things to escalate into a broader regional conflict," she said.

A cease-fire would "certainly" lead to a de-escalation of tensions, she added.

Asked about Palestinian civilians that were killed in a recent Israeli hostage operation, Singh said the US is "deeply concerned" by some of the reports when it comes to civilian casualties.

"It's something that we're going to continue to speak to the Israelis about. It's something that we're concerned about. But I just don't have anything additional to add, other than what we've put out in the readout yesterday, which you referenced," she said.

Israeli forces rescued four hostages from Gaza on Saturday held since October by the Palestinian group Hamas in a raid on the Al-Nuseirat refugee camp, killing at least 274 Palestinians and wounding more than 700.

The Pentagon on Monday rejected claims that Israel used the pier during its hostage rescue operation but said "there was some type of helicopter activity nearby, but that was completely separate."

According to local media, UN relief chief Martin Griffiths said Tuesday at a news conference in Jordan that if the allegations were true, "they are very concerning, because they would put at risk any future humanitarian engagement in that operation."

The WFP said it has paused its delivery of humanitarian aid via the pier because of concerns for the safety of staff following Saturday's incident.

Israel has faced international condemnation amid its continued brutal offensive on Gaza since an Oct. 7 attack by Hamas, despite a UN Security Council resolution demanding an immediate cease-fire.​​​​​​​

More than 37,200 Palestinians have since been killed in Gaza, most of them women and children, and more than 84,900 others injured, according to local health authorities.

Eight months into the Israeli war, vast tracts of Gaza lay in ruins amid a crippling blockade of food, clean water and medicine.

Israel is accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice, whose latest ruling ordered it to immediately halt its operation in the southern city of Rafah, where more than 1 million Palestinians had sought refuge from the war before it was invaded on May 6.