First Shipment Of Gaza Aid For US-Built Pier Departs Cyprus, UN Claims “Full-Blown Famine”

The US military has reportedly completed building the off-shore pier for Gaza humanitarian aid deliveries, but it has yet to be anchored to Gaza’s shore that this crucial part of the process has been held up due to inclement weather in the eastern Mediterranean. 

“As of today, the U.S. military has completed the off-shore construction of the Trident pier section, or the causeway, which is the component that will eventually be anchored to the Gaza shore,” Pentagon deputy press secretary Sabrina Singh told reporters Thursday.

Reuters: US flagged cargo vessel carrying aid to a pier built by the US off Gaza sets sail from Larnaca, Cyprus.

“Today there are still forecasted high winds and high sea swells, which are causing unsafe conditions for the JLOTS components to be moved, so the pier sections and military vessels involved in its construction are still positioned at the Port of Ashdod,” she added.

Cyprus’ foreign ministry on the same day announced that the first vessel carrying humanitarian aid to be offloaded on the newly US-constructed pier is en route. 

It comes two full months after President Biden first unveiled the plan for the US Army to construct a pier. “The US vessel, loaded with much needed humanitarian assistance, departed from the Larnaca port with the aim of transferring as much aid to Gaza as possible through the maritime corridor,” said Foreign Minister Constantinos Kombos.

The Pentagon indicated further that it hopes to have the final causeway section of the pier in place and functional by “later this week.”

“The Sagamore is a cargo vessel that will use the JLOTS system [Joint Logistics Over-the-Shore system], and will make trips between Cyprus and the offshore floating pier as USAID and other partners collect aid from around the world,” Singh explained in the briefing.

Time is of the essence given the United Nations is now warning that northern Gaza is already in a state of “full-blown famine.” Additionally hundreds of thousands of civilians are now fleeing the southern city of Rafah as the city faces an imminent IDF ground invasion.

At the UN Security Council (UNCS), China in particular has been stepping up its criticisms of Washington policy on Israel of late. Beijing has also been highlighting US ‘hypocrisy’ in daily press briefings. For example, the Chinese foreign ministry this week issued a statement saying “China… strongly calls on Israel to heed the overwhelming demands of the international community, stop attacking Rafah, and do everything it can to avoid a more serious humanitarian disaster in the Gaza Strip.”

Hamas has continued to threaten the project, especially if US troops are found to be at the pier site:

Qassam mortar teams (six) vs IDF excavators and troop positions establishing the Netzarim corridor. The corridor divides the Strip and connects to the US Army pier project south of Gaza City. [Qassam Brigades 1/5] pic.twitter.com/48mJEhSEzP

— Jon Elmer (@jonelmer) May 2, 2024

Bloomberg has further featured the following Chinese Embassy statement: 

Liu Pengyu, a spokesperson for the Chinese Embassy in Washington, criticized the US for talking about “a ceasefire while pouring weapons” into the “biggest humanitarian tragedy in the 21st century,” in an emailed statement.

China has lately launched its own efforts at mediating the conflict, given it hosted Hamas and Fatah officials in Beijing last week for rare talks aimed at achieving Palestinian political unity.