No clear plan for US aid deliveries to Gaza by water: NBC News
3 Min Read
US officials say the Pentagon believes a proposal for workers from other nationalities to deliver aid from the pier to Gaza's shore carries security risks.
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Egyptian humanitarian aid trucks line up to cross the Rafah border crossing between Egypt and the Gaza Strip, on Saturday, March 23, 2024. (AP Photo/Amr Nabil)
The US Defense Department still does not have a plan on how to implement US President Joe Biden's initiative to build a floating pier without creating a security threat for US troops or third-party workers, NBC News reported, citing US officials.
The people of Gaza are facing dire shortages of food, water, and medicine, with the United Nations warning of the risk of famine. The entire population of 2.2 million is in crisis or worse levels of food insecurity, according to the World Food Program (WFP). This comes as "Israel" continues to block land crossings that allow thousands of tons of aid into the besieged Gaza Strip.
Earlier in March, Biden ordered the Pentagon to build a temporary port for the delivery of humanitarian aid in the Gaza Strip. Aid will be first supplied to a floating pier and then delivered to shore by small vessels, according to the Defense Department.
The Biden administration is adamant that no US personnel will enter Gaza once the aid deliveries using the floating pier begin, the report said. At the same time, a proposal for workers from other nationalities to deliver the aid carries security risks, it highlighted.
One of the main options being considered is to attract drivers and security guards from other nationalities, the broadcaster reported. However, it remains unclear whether they should be Israelis, Palestinians, or from other nationalities.
"Someone could tuck a bomb on a truck with a timer or remote detonator and cause a catastrophe," a US military official was quoted as saying.
The report added that US military officials are also discussing who will guard and inspect the trucks once they reach Gaza, and who will transport supplies to and from distribution points.
US officials told NBC News that "Israel" is considering using international Private Military Companies (PMCs) to secure the soon-to-be-established American dock in the Gaza Strip.
A former US official and two current US officials told NBC News that "Israel" had already approached several security companies, suggesting to US officials that other countries pay the "hefty" price of the private military contractors.
Only "some" US officials have expressed resistance to the idea of PMCs landing in the Gaza Strip, particularly if those contractors were of American nationality.
It is noteworthy that in early March, Sigrid Kaag, the UN aid coordinator for the Gaza Strip, emphasized that delivering humanitarian supplies to Gaza by airdrops or sea cannot sufficiently substitute land deliveries.
She stressed that the international community must "flood the market in Gaza with humanitarian goods" and "re-energize the private sector" so more commercial goods can enter to meet civilians' needs.
Read more: URNWA chief outraged by Israeli ban of food convoys to North Gaza
