Gaza aid jetty to be completed in coming days
The jetty being constructed by the United States off the coast of Gaza to facilitate the delivery of humanitarian aid is expected to be completed in the coming days, according to sources speaking to the Cyprus News Agency (CNA).
“The construction of the floating pier is progressing smoothly and is anticipated to be finalised this week,” the sources said.
According to a recent announcement from the Central Command of the US Army, the temporary pier in Gaza will enable the delivery of large quantities of humanitarian aid from ships to shore via trucks, with vehicles moving directly from the ships along the temporary pier to a sorting station on land.
Furthermore, the maritime route between Cyprus and Gaza, known as the Amalthea plan, will facilitate the delivery of international humanitarian aid shipments by sea.
The latest humanitarian aid shipment from Cyprus to Gaza, aboard the ship the Jennifer, landed at the Israeli port of Ashdod on April 28.
News website Reuters reported that the jetty had cost a total of $320 million (€298m) to construct, and that around 1,000 US servicepeople had been involved in its construction, most of whom are from the US Army and the US Navy.
The jetty’s potential placement has also been a cause for concern among some quarters, with British newspaper The Guardian having reported that the jetty’s placement may be too far south to help alleviate the “very high” risk of famine in the northern part of Gaza.
The north of Gaza, including Gaza City, has been effectively cut off from the rest of the strip by a military road constructed by the Israeli Defence Force which connects Israel with Gaza’s coast, known as the Netzarim corridor.
Meanwhile, Israeli forces seized control of the Rafah border crossing between Gaza and Egypt on Tuesday and tanks pushed into the southern Gazan city of Rafah as international mediators struggled to find agreement on a ceasefire between Israel and its Hamas foe.