Heavy sea states affect US Gaza maritime aid mission: CENTCOM

By Diyar Guldogan

WASHINGTON (AA) - Heavy sea states affected on Saturday four US Army vessels supporting the maritime humanitarian aid mission in the Gaza Strip, the US Central Command (CENTCOM) said.

"The vessels broke free from their moorings and two vessels are now anchored on the beach near the pier. The third and fourth vessels are beached on the coast of Israel near Ashkelon," CENTCOM said in a statement.

Efforts to recover the vessels are under way with assistance from the Israeli Navy, it said, adding Israeli army supports the recovery efforts near the pier.

"No U.S. personnel will enter Gaza. No injuries have been reported and the pier remains fully functional. We will release additional details as they become available," it added.

On May 17, trucks carrying humanitarian assistance began moving ashore via a temporary pier constructed for aid delivery into the Gaza Strip.

CENTCOM on Thursday said 820.5 metric tons of aid supplies had been delivered to Gaza via the floating pier as of May 22.

The Pentagon in March said it would undertake an emergency mission to establish the pier to deliver up to 2 million meals per day.

The mission included a floating pier -- an 1,800-foot-long causeway – that would be attached to the shore and a group of logistic support vessels.

Israel has continued its brutal offensive on the Gaza Strip despite a UN Security Council resolution demanding an immediate cease-fire in the enclave.​​​​​​​