Ryder’s statement did not indicate whether US forces would attempt to resume operations; Some officials said it was still unclear. A senior U.S. defense official, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss the military’s calculations, said commanders considered trying again Thursday but decided against it because of concerns about the state of the sea.
“The pier will soon cease operations, and more details on that process and timing will be available in the coming days,” Rider’s statement said.
Repeated, repeated work, at a cost of $230 million, A source of controversy in polarized Washington, administration officials have defended the initiative despite its flaws, and other Democrats say the plan underscores Biden’s failure to ensure Israel prioritizes the hunger crisis facing Palestinians as a result of its war with Hamas.
The operation has sent about 20 million pounds of food ashore since it began on May 17. This is in part because Israeli officials have resisted U.S. and international demands for more aid to Gaza by land, citing the need for humanitarian groups.
Many Republicans say the mission, announced by Biden in his State of the Union address in early March, puts the roughly 1,000 U.S. troops involved at risk of being attacked. Those fears did not materialize.
Speaking to reporters Thursday, Biden’s national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, said the ship’s mission had made a difference in “trying to deal with the heartbreaking humanitarian situation” resulting from the nine-month war. “Any result that produces more food and more humanitarian goods for the people of Gaza I see as a success,” he added.
Sullivan said the main focus now is getting aid across Gaza.
As the war’s shocking civilian casualties continue to rise, aid groups’ fears for the safety of their workers have challenged supplies from ships. Until recently, the arrivals were piled up in the beachside arena. A U.S. defense official familiar with the issue, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the latest developments, said a significant amount of that aid has been shifted elsewhere, making room for new supplies if the ship gets up and running again.
Late last month, U.S. personnel moved the structure to Ashdod, north of Gaza, citing concerns that rough waves, which had previously caused extensive damage to the structure, could once again put it at risk.
Defense officials have repeatedly said, however, that the ship’s deployment is temporary and depends on calm seas to enable aid deliveries. The floating system is connected to land by a steel causeway and is limited to operating in waves no higher than three feet, according to past estimates in US military journals.
The U.S. Agency for International Development, working in coordination with humanitarian groups working in Gaza, will continue to use all available means to get food and medicine to Palestinian citizens, an official there said this week. Those groups have begun using the port at Ashdod for additional aid deliveries, the official said.
When the project was announced, administration officials said the ship would help provide 2 million meals a day to starving Palestinians. Biden said the scope of suffering in Gaza made the U.S. mission a moral imperative, and he insisted no U.S. troops would go ashore — trying to find a balance between putting Americans in harm’s way and standing idly by with hunger. The civilian population of the war.
Officials predict activity will pick up in early May, but what will become a recurring theme are strong tides Changed the plan, pushing back the initial anchoring of the pier until mid-month.
On May 25, just days after the initial shipments began flowing, rough seas and strong winds tossed four military ships off the coast of Gaza, breaking the vessel into pieces, prompting the suspension of operations. US officials have estimated at least $22 million in damage to the ship.
American troops reassembled it at Ashdod and towed it back into place on June 8. After six days it was removed – Again due to weather concerns. Before its most recent decommissioning in late June, the ship facilitated steady supplies for about a week, bringing 10 million pounds of aid ashore, the Pentagon said.
Missy Ryan contributed to this report.
