(Daily360.com) The Pentagon announced on June 27 a review of issues with the military-installed aid pier in Gaza. When other routes to deliver aid became inaccessible, the military built a temporary floating pier in the Mediterranean Sea to receive humanitarian aid for Gaza’s citizens affected by the Hamas war with Israel.
The pier cost $230 million, and inspectors general of the US Agency for International Development (USAID) and the Department of Defense (DoD) will be combining their teams to investigate the many problems with the pier. Mid-May saw the pier open for delivery, but logistical issues and rough seas caused damage that hindered consistent aid deliveries into Gaza.
President Biden’s plans for the pier reached the Pentagon just days before his public announcement. In that time frame, defense officials rushed to put the plan into action. It became inoperable due to logistical and operational issues, as well as damage to the hastily built pier.
With the US troops in possible danger from the damage, officials shut the pier down until the rough seas calmed down. They towed the shattered pier to a safer location for repairs.
Robert P. Storch, the Pentagon’s Inspector General, released a statement saying that the USAID and DoD teams will combine their forces to look into the problems connected with the assignment. They will use their resources and expertise to develop a comprehensive review of the failures of the mission.
As the United Nations work to deliver humanitarian aid via the pier ceased when it became unsafe in early June, US officials warned the aid organizations, waiting for supplies in Gaza, that the permanent cessation of operations via the pier would last for several weeks.
The pier was intended to cease operations sometime in September, but depending on the review and the conditions of the bad weather in the Mediterranean Sea, defense experts claim it may not be replaced. They stated that the idea was never practical to begin with.
Simone Ledeen, a former assistant Middle East Secretary of Defense, stated that the pier is not repairable.
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