The pier, which will cost $320 million, should help alleviate Gaza’s greatest needs. President Biden promised construction in March, but first the necessary navy ships with materials had to sail to the Mediterranean Sea.
When the so-called Joint Logistics Over-the-Shore system (JLOTS) is operational, an equivalent of 150 trucks can be landed per day. That amounts to about two million meals and two million bottles of water per day, according to the US. More than two million people live in Gaza.
In theory, the pier could greatly supplement the number of trucks entering Gaza every day. At the beginning of May, that number had risen to 252. But now that Israel has also taken over the area around Rafah, the Israelis now control all land border crossings, including those between Gaza and Egypt. It is unclear when emergency aid will again arrive in Gaza via Rafah.
The two other land border posts, in the south of Gaza at Kerem Shalom and in the north at Erez, are in any case under Israeli control. The crossing at Erez is open, but the one at Kerem Shalom was temporarily closed after a Hamas attack on the border post, which killed four Israeli soldiers. Israel has promised to reopen Kerem Shalom on Wednesday.
Even now that the use of the pier is imminent, land border crossings remain the most effective route for aid transports, aid organizations say. The US Department of Defense confirms this. “The best way is through the land routes and we want those open,” said Pentagon spokesperson Sabrina Singh. “The pier is intended to help and complement other ways in which aid can come in.”
Aid agencies say 500 trucks are needed every day to provide Gaza with enough emergency aid.
A floating quay and a pier
In fact, the JLOTS system consists of two parts, which were assembled at sea by the US Navy. The first part is a floating quay, where ships with emergency aid from Cyprus will soon moor. This will be located a few kilometers off the coast of Gaza. The emergency aid is transferred to trucks at that quay. These are then transported by smaller ships to the second JLOTS part: an elongated pier that will be attached to the coast of Gaza. The trucks will enter Gaza from that pier.
The parts are now still off the coast of Ashdod, Israel, about 30 kilometers north of Gaza. Once the jetty has been towed, it will be located 5 kilometers off the coast of Gaza City. According to the US, it depends on the weather when the towing will take place.
US military personnel will merely move the parts; President Biden has pledged that no American will set foot in Gaza. The pier will be captured by Israeli soldiers.
Wary of attacks
Once operational, the United Nations World Food Program (WFP) must play a major role in distributing emergency aid. Private emergency organizations are wary because of previous Israeli attacks on aid convoys. In early April, Israel killed seven aid workers from World Central Kitchen in a targeted attack. However, Israel says it was a mistake. WFP has demanded guarantees from Israel that aid workers will be left alone. Moreover, the details of how WFP will work still need to be worked out.
By using the pier, Israel can further circumvent the UN organization UNRWA. Israel accuses the organization of having ties to Hamas. UNRWA would also allow emergency aid to be taken by the militant movement. The UN ordered an independent investigation into alleged links between UNRWA and Hamas. In April it was concluded that Israel had not provided evidence for its accusations against UNRWA.
It is still unclear when the sea route for emergency aid to Gaza will be at full strength. Initially, ninety trucks per day must enter Gaza via the pier. That number should quickly rise to 150 if this distribution route proves to work well, said Pentagon spokesman Singh: “I think you’ll see a crawl-walk-run scenario.”
Tags: completes floating pier coast Gaza putting provide emergency aid time
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