Rick Moran – PJ Media "Is the $320 million U.S.-built and operated pier in Gaza going to end up being a White Elephant? Or will it be a magnet for terror attacks?
"Ready or not, the pier will begin operating in the next few days. A shipment of supplies embarked from Cyprus on Thursday and will reach the pier by the weekend." . . .
U.S.-Built Pier in Gaza Nears Opening, but Distributing Aid Is No Easy Feat (msn.com): "The U.S. said it would soon begin using a pier to receive aid for the Gaza Strip but is struggling to set up distribution, marking a test for President Biden’s promise to ease a humanitarian crisis in the Palestinian enclave.
The opening of the $320 million U.S.-built floating pier would mark the first major use of a sea route to deliver assistance to Gaza since the current conflict began. It involves hundreds of troops, several ships and a mission supported by humanitarian groups and several nations, including Israel.
The U.S. hopes to begin using the pier to deliver humanitarian assistance in the coming days, a White House spokesman told reporters Thursday, after Biden announced it in March during his State of the Union address.
The opening of the pier comes at a critical time in the more than seven-month-old conflict in Gaza. Israel has begun military operations in the southern city of Rafah, threatening the two main aid crossing points. The U.S., which opposes a Rafah invasion, has suspended a shipment of weapons. More than a million Gazans are experiencing famine-like conditions, according to a United Nations-backed system that monitors hunger crises worldwide." . . .
Exclusive: US military's pier in Gaza to cost $320 million | Reuters . . ."Concerns about the threat to American troops getting caught up in the Israel-Hamas war were underscored on Thursday as news emerged of a mortar attack near the area where the pier will eventually touch ground. No U.S. forces were present, however, and they were miles off shore -- beyond mortar range.