US soldier in ‘critical condition’ due to noncombat injury sustained on Gaza aid pier
An American soldier is in “critical condition” after suffering a noncombat injury while working on a US-constructed aid pier off the coast of Gaza, Reuters reports, quoting an anonymous US defence official.
Earlier we reported that the deputy commander of the US military’s Central Command (CENTCOM), Vice Admiral Brad Cooper, told reporters that two other American soldiers had also suffered “very minor, routine injuries” while working on the pier.
The third soldier was injured on a ship at sea and medically evacuated to an Israeli hospital, the anonymous source said, without specifying the nature of the injury.
Some 1,000 US service members were involved in the construction of the pier, which went into operation last week, while it is estimated it will cost $320m for the first 90 days to operate.
Almost 40 percent of aid trucks entering Gaza came through pier, US says
The US-constructed aid pier off the coast of Gaza is starting to get more supplies to people in need, but conditions remain challenging, US officials said on Thursday. On Wednesday, 27 of the total 70 trucks that entered Gaza through all land and sea crossings came through the pier, The Associated Press reports, citing US statistics.
That, however, represents a fraction of the 150 daily truckloads of food and supplies that the aid pier is intended to handle at its full capacity.
Gaza as a whole needs about 600 trucks per day to stave off famine in the Palestinian enclave, according to the US Agency for International Development.
Also represents a fraction of the 190 daily before the Rafah assault. Without the re-opening of Rafah and Kerem Shalom, famine will only spread and worsen.
Gaza-bound food rots as Rafah crossing stays shut
Some of the food supplies waiting to enter Gaza from Egypt have begun to rot as the Rafah border crossing remains shut to aid deliveries for a third week and people inside the Palestinian enclave face worsening hunger.
Rafah was a main entry point for humanitarian relief as well as some commercial supplies before Israel stepped up its military offensive and took control of the crossing from the Palestinian side. Egyptian officials and sources say humanitarian operations are at risk from military activity and that Israel needs to hand the crossing back to Palestinians before it can start operating again.
One truck driver, Mahmoud Hussein, said his goods had been loaded on his vehicle for a month, gradually spoiling in the sun. Some of the foodstuffs are being discarded, while others sold off cheap.
“Apples, bananas, chicken and cheese, a lot of things have gone rotten, some stuff has been returned and is being sold for a quarter of its price,” he said, crouching under his truck for shade.
"I’m sorry to say that the onions we’re carrying will at best be eaten by animals because of the worms in them.”
