US Floating Dock in Gaza Coast Damaged Again

The floating dock established by the US government at the Gaza coast, costing millions of dollars, has been damaged again, raising uncertainty about the future of this aid structure for the people of Gaza. Israeli media released images of parts of the US Army's temporary marine dock that had washed ashore in Tel Aviv on Saturday, June 2, after collapsing again on the Gaza coast. According to reports, Israeli citizens, including those at the popular 'Frishman' beach in Tel Aviv, encountered large pieces detached from the American dock set up for aiding the people of Gaza. Reports from Israeli media indicated that municipal inspectors and police forces in Tel Aviv collected these pieces after some time. This is not the first time the temporary floating dock, established by CENTCOM, the US Central Command, in a central area of the Gaza coast, has faced collapse. High sea waves due to the recent hot and humid weather were cited as the cause of this latest collapse. Since the official operation of the dock began on May 18, it has only been active for 12 days, with the rest of the time spent on repairs and re-establishment by US forces. The US has required assistance from Israel for repairs and has transported the dock to the Israeli port of Ashdod for reassembly. During the 12 days of actual operation, approximately 250 truckloads of supplies were unloaded from it. This dock was intended to be a quicker and more efficient response for transferring humanitarian aid to the people in Gaza, with multiple ships daily transporting necessary items from Cyprus to this dock in Gaza for unloading and distribution. About 1,000 American soldiers established this floating dock under a $230 million project ordered by Joe Biden within two months, without entering Gaza. On March 8, amid global criticism of Israel for 'obstructing' aid to civilians in Gaza, the US President stated that this temporary terminal would 'significantly' increase humanitarian aid. Before the latest collapse of the dock, the World Food Program, affiliated with the United Nations, had halted the transfer of additional aid shipments to the American terminal following the deaths of 274 Palestinians during Israeli commando operations to rescue four Israeli hostages in Gaza. According to The Guardian, US officials lacked precise knowledge of the region's weather conditions and did not assess that high sea waves could lead to its collapse. In this situation, the fate of this project has become uncertain. The New York Times also reported last week that the dock is not meeting its set goals and will be dismantled. However, General Pat Ryder, Pentagon spokesperson, stated on June 21 that 'contrary to some media reports, we have not set a date for the end of this mission.' Ziad Issa, head of policy and research at the British charity 'ActionAid,' told The Guardian that the amount of daily humanitarian aid entering the strip in the first half of June has decreased to less than 100 trucks per day. Israel has accused the extremist group Hamas of 'looting' aid sent for Gaza civilians, especially fuel, for its forces and transporting it to 'terrorist tunnels' where Hamas leaders are hiding. Nevertheless, the Israeli army reduced military operations at the Rafah border last week to facilitate aid delivery into Gaza through the 'Karem Shalom' crossing along the Rafah border. This decision faced dissatisfaction from the Israeli Prime Minister and Defense Minister, but the army continued its decision to halt daily operations from 8 AM to 7 PM. On the other hand, Ziad Issa told The Guardian that the situation has seen 'no difference' since the tactical halt of the Israeli army was announced. The Gaza war began following an attack by the extremist group Hamas on Israeli territory last October and is now entering its ninth month. Hamas is recognized as a terrorist organization by the US and the European Union, which had exclusively governed Gaza for 17 years before the attack on Israel, with its forces accompanying UNRWA, the UN relief agency for 2.3 million residents of Gaza. Since the outbreak of the war, UNRWA has faced multiple crises with Israel and has been accused of some of its personnel being involved in Hamas's attack on the Israeli people.