US President Joe Biden will announce a plan to create a new port in Gaza to increase deliveries of humanitarian aid to the war-ravaged enclave, senior US officials told reporters.
Officials said Biden will make the announcement Thursday evening during his State of the Union address, an annual speech delivered to members of the U.S. Congress.
Under the plan, the U.S. military would set up the pier off Gaza, but U.S. troops would not be on the ground, the officials said.
They did not provide additional details on the logistics of the plan, but one official said the United States has “unique capabilities” and can do things “only overseas.”
A United Nations spokesperson, Stéphane Dujarric, said his organization welcomed the announcement in a press statement.
“Any way to get more aid to Gaza, whether by sea or air, is obviously a good thing,” Dujarric told reporters. “We need more points of entry and a greater volume of aid by land. »
However, he stressed that the international community must focus on large-scale food deliveries by land, in order to address the humanitarian crisis unfolding in Gaza.
An unnamed Israeli official, speaking to the Reuters news agency, also said Israel “fully supports” the construction of a “temporary dock” in Gaza.
The announcement comes as President Biden continues to face outrage over his administration’s political and material support for Israel in the war on Gaza.
The Biden administration has refused to call for a complete ceasefire and has continued to supply weapons to Israel for its war.
Israel’s bombings and ground operations have killed at least 30,800 Palestinians since October 7, when the Palestinian group Hamas launched an attack on southern Israel that killed at least 1,139 people.
However, in the face of growing political pressure, the administration has changed its tone slightly in recent weeks.
Last week, Vice President Kamala Harris called for a temporary “ceasefire” for the first time, although she was simply referring to a pause in fighting while Hamas and Israel negotiated an exchange of hostages.
Over the weekend, the United States began dropping aid into Gaza, where Jamie McGoldrick, the U.N. humanitarian coordinator for the occupied Palestinian territory, told reporters Wednesday that “children are dying of starvation.” “.
The UN has said a state of famine in Gaza is “almost inevitable” and could be declared as early as next week. McGoldrick said that while airdrops and naval deliveries help distribute aid, an increase in reliable ground deliveries is more urgent.
Humanitarian groups have accused Israeli forces of restricting land deliveries, both to and within Gaza. But Israel has denied it is hampering relief efforts.
“Destroy the food system”
In an article published Thursday on the social media platform ) of Israel.” continued aid blockade in Gaza.
Earlier in the day, Michael Fakhri, the UN special rapporteur on the right to food, also warned that Israel’s actions go beyond short-term obstacles, representing a broader attack on stability of Gaza.
“Israel is not just denying and restricting the flow of humanitarian aid to Gaza. Israel is destroying the food system in Gaza,” he said in a speech to the UN Human Rights Council.
Fakhri called it a “starvation campaign.”
For their part, senior U.S. officials said the new port “will provide the capacity to transport hundreds of additional trucks of aid each day.”
An official added that “it will take several weeks to plan and execute significant capacity.” Transportation of supplies will also require the establishment of a maritime corridor from Cyprus.
Officials said Israel had been briefed on the plan and the two countries were working together on security requirements.
They added that the United States was also coordinating with “partners and allies,” including the United Nations and humanitarian organizations.