Embarrasing
US army vessels supporting Gaza aid pier run aground
Two US vessels, used to deliver aid to Palestinians, have been grounded on a beach in the Israeli port of Ashdod, after rough seas caused some of the vessels to break free from their moorings
Beachgoers in Ashdod, Israel could be seen relaxing near the grounded vessels on Saturday
Humanitarian agencies have said the US-built pier cannot be a replacement for aid arriving in the Gaza Strip by land through two Rafah crossings seized by Israeli forces.
Former UN official questions US pier after latest difficulties
Craig Mokhiber, a former top UN human rights official, has questioned the US plan to deliver humanitarian aid to Gaza through a temporary pier after the US said four vessels supporting the pier were washed away in the high seas on Saturday.
Mokhiber, who resigned from the UN last year, described the pier as a “fig leaf to cover US complicity in genocide and in the destruction of UNRWA” in a post on X. He said the pier had “failed to have any meaningful impact” while “Israel continues to block aid at all crossing points”.
The US Army has said the pier remained operational and is still working to deliver humanitarian assistance, after the incident.
On Friday, the UN said it had received the equivalent of 97 trucks of humanitarian supplies through the floating dock since it came into operation on May 17.
UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said on Friday that aid delivery through the pier had “stabilised” after a “rocky start” but “what we want to see, as we’ve been saying, is massive aid coming in through land routes”.
https://x.com/CraigMokhiber/status/1794405721922228682
