US confirms aid pier removed from Gaza due to high seas
The Pentagon says a temporary US aid pier has again been removed from the Gaza coast due to high seas and will be towed to an Israeli port.
It is the third time the pier has been detached from the shore because of weather conditions since its initial installation in mid-May, and the effort is also facing difficulties with distribution of assistance once it reaches Gaza.
“Due to high sea states expected this weekend, Central Command has removed the temporary pier from its anchored position in Gaza and will tow it back to Ashdod, Israel,” Deputy Pentagon Press Secretary Sabrina Singh told journalists, referring to the military command responsible for the Middle East.
She said she does not have a date for the pier’s reinstallation, and that “the commander will continue to assess the sea states over the weekend”. The pier was first anchored to the Gaza coast in mid-May, but was damaged by bad weather later in the month and had to be removed for repairs.
US has sent Israel thousands of 2,000-pound bombs since the war began: Report
The Biden administration has sent to Israel massive shipments of munitions, including more than 10,000 highly destructive 2,000-pound bombs and thousands of Hellfire missiles, since the start of the war in Gaza, said two US officials, Reuters news agency reported.
The US has transferred at least 14,000 of the MK-84 2,000-pound bombs, 6,500 500-pound bombs, 3,000 Hellfire precision-guided air-to-ground missiles, 1,000 bunker-buster bombs, 2,600 air-dropped small-diameter bombs, and other munitions, according to the officials.
The tally of shipments suggests there has been no significant drop-off in US military support for Israel.
“While these numbers could be expended relatively quickly in a major conflict, this list clearly reflects a substantial level of support from the United States for our Israeli allies,” Tom Karako, a weapons expert at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, told Reuters.
Earlier this week, a senior Biden administration official said that the US sent $6.5bn worth of weapons to Israel since the war began.
