U.S.-built $230 million floating pier in Gaza to shut down after two months

 The $230 million floating pier built by the United States to provide humanitarian aid to starving Palestinians in Gaza is shutting down after just two months of barely being operable, with the White House claiming that the U.S. Navy is having trouble distributing relief goods due to looting and inclement weather.

During the State of the Union address back in March, President Joe Biden announced the pier construction to "enable a massive increase in the amount of humanitarian assistance getting into Gaza every day." But the floating pier, first anchored on May 17, has faced significant obstacles from the start.

Starving and desperate Palestinians reportedly hijacked the first convoys of aid in May, while adverse weather conditions have frequently disrupted operations, sometimes detaching the pier from the shore and beaching vessels associated with the effort. At least three of the 1,000 troops involved in the operation had been injured due to these challenges.  

The floating pier, initially scheduled to remain operational until at least July 31, had been relocated to Ashdod Port in Israel thrice due to adverse weather conditions, most recently on June 28. And now, it is scheduled to be reattached to Gaza on July 17 and shut down a few days later. As a result, it has only been operational for 23 out of the 53 days since May.

These challenges have led to the decision to shut it down before the end of July. 

"I do anticipate that in relatively short order, we will wind down pier operations," national security adviser Jake Sullivan announced during the North Atlantic Treaty Organization Public Forum in Washington on July 11.

Sullivan suggested that the floating pier is no longer essential for Gaza's supply of food, water and other humanitarian aid due to the re-opening of key border crossings amid the ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict.

"The real issue right now is not about getting aid into Gaza. It's about getting aid around Gaza," Sullivan added.

U.S. wasted millions of taxpayer money on the floating pier

This announcement came amid an escalating humanitarian crisis in Gaza.

According to Politico, border checkpoints have closed following Israel's war against Hamas. Israeli officials have intensified inspections of trucks at open border crossings to minimize the entry of weapons into the territory. These additional Israeli checkpoints have slowed the entry of trucks, carrying basic necessities, including food and medicine, into the territory from Israel, Jordan and Egypt.

"There is an unprecedented horrific humanitarian disaster in Gaza right now, and we’ve got to do everything we can to make sure that tens of thousands of children do not starve to death," Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) said in an interview.

Israeli military activities in urban areas of Gaza have hindered aid groups' efforts to distribute critical supplies. The U.S. initially attempted to overcome these obstacles through airdrops and the pier installation, but security concerns have left much of the aid undelivered onshore.