Gaza [Israel], March 11: A United States military ship carrying equipment to build a temporary pier off the coast of Gaza to deliver humanitarian supplies - and get around Israeli obstruction of aid operations as it continues pounding the Gaza Strip - has departed the US.
The General Frank S Besson left its base in the US on Sunday, a little more than a day after US President Joe Biden's announcement, "carrying the first equipment to establish a temporary pier to deliver vital humanitarian supplies", the military's Central Command (CENTCOM) said.
While the US ostensibly aims to alleviate the acute humanitarian crisis in Gaza, Biden continues to approve arms sales to Israel as it continues its assault. Since the attack by Qassam Brigades and other Palestinian armed groups on Israeli civilians and communities on October 7, the US has approved 100 arms sales to Israel to carry out its retaliatory war in Gaza, which has killed more than 30,000 people - mostly women and children.
Just last month, the US was preparing to give Israel about 1,000 MK-82 500-pound (227kg) bombs and 1,000 KMU-572 Joint Direct Attack Munitions (JDAMs) that turn unguided ammunitions into precision-guided bombs.
The US has also bypassed Congressional approval twice to accelerate arms to Israel, even as Israel stands accused of possibly committing genocide in the International Court of Justice (ICJ).
Israel refuses to facilitate the delivery of vital food aid to starving Palestinians in Gaza and has been accused of shooting at people seeking aid. The solution offered by the US to this has been to plan a pier off the coast of Gaza.
"If the US was serious [about delivering aid], it would have pressured Israel into opening the land crossings and allowing aid and relief in as well as stopping the onslaught. We have not heard Biden call for a stopping of the war or even a ceasefire," Mohammed al-Masri, from the Palestinian Center for Research and Strategic Studies, told Al Jazeera.
Biden said in his State of the Union speech on Thursday that he was directing the military to set up a pier off Gaza's Mediterranean coast to receive ships carrying food, water, medicine and temporary shelters as Gaza has no functioning port infrastructure.
Source: Qatar Tribune