Biden approved Gaza pier despite USAID fears it would undermine land routes

Temporary floating pier, dogged by weather and security issues, ended operations last month

The US floating pier was only in operation for about 20 days. AP

US President Joe Biden ordered the construction of a floating military pier for the delivery of aid to Gaza despite concerns from an aid agency that the plan would undercut efforts to force Israel to open land crossings into the enclave.

The watchdog for the US Agency for International Development said the $230 million project known as the Joint Logistics Over-the-Shore system, or Jlots, was only in operation for about 20 days, dogged by weather and security challenges that limited the amounts of aid delivered.

“Multiple USAID staff expressed concerns that the focus on using Jlots would detract from the agency’s advocacy for opening land crossings, which were seen as more efficient and proven methods of transporting aid into Gaza,” the inspector general said in the report.

“However, once the President issued the directive, the agency’s focus was to use Jlots as effectively as possible.”

Mr Biden announced plans to build the temporary pier off Gaza's coast during his State of the Union address in March in an effort to accelerate the entry of aid to Gaza, amid UN concerns of a worsening humanitarian crisis.

US establishes Gaza pier to try to boost aid

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The floating platform was fixed to the beach in May and was meant to transport aid to Gaza from Cyprus on a series of vessels.

Operations were stopped, however, due to rough seas that caused $22 million in damage. US troops repaired it but the pier continued to face problems amid persistent weather and security problems.

The project ultimately fell short of its own goal of supplying aid to 500,000 or more Palestinians every month for three months, instead delivering only enough aid to feed 450,000 for one month, according to the report.

The report also said the US had failed to honour prerequisites from the World Food Programme, the UN agency that had agreed to take part in distributing aid.

The WFP had requested that the pier be in north of the strip, close to a population centre with the most acute humanitarian needs at the time, and have a UN member state provide security for the operation in an attempt to protect the agency’s neutrality.

The Pentagon ultimately decided to set the pier along the central Gaza coast, giving security concerns.

The Israeli military provided security for the operation after no UN member state agreed to provide it.

The White House defended Jlots after the report's release.

US soldiers stand next to lorries arriving loaded with humanitarian aid at the floating pier off the Gaza coast. AP

“The temporary pier was part of a comprehensive response to the dire humanitarian situation in northern Gaza, which also included delivering aid via land crossings and air drops, and it had a real impact – delivering nearly 20 million pounds [9 million kilograms] of food and water that otherwise would not have gone to those in desperate need," National Security Council spokesman Sean Savett said in a statement.

"From the beginning, we said this would not be easy. We were honest and transparent about the challenges."

Israeli officials have said that, despite tightening restrictions on the entry of assistance, they allow enough aid into the strip.

Aid organisations say, however, that the amount provided is insufficient to meet the needs of Gaza's 2.3 million people.

Mr Biden and his administration have, since the war's start, called on Israel to allow more aid into the enclave. But it has fallen short of more forceful action, such as placing conditions on military aid.

More than 40,500 Palestinians have been killed, local health authorities say, amid Israeli bombardments by land, air and sea that have reduced much of the coastal enclave to rubble.

It was in response to the Hamas-led attacks on southern Israel on October 7 in which 1,200 people were killed.

Aid organisations continue to warn that food insecurity remains an acute problem.