Today: 2 April 2025
11 March 2024
2 mins read

US dispatches aid ship to Gaza

The UN has warned that famine in Gaza is “almost inevitable” and children are starving to death….reports Asian Lite News

The US Army has dispatched a ship to send humanitarian aid to Gaza, Central Command (CENTCOM) said on Sunday, days after President Joe Biden promised to build a temporary pier to supply the besieged enclave.

General Frank S. Besson left Joint Base Langley-Eustis in Virginia “less than 36 hours after President Biden announced the US would provide humanitarian assistance to Gaza by sea,” CENTCOM said in a statement. The logistics support vessel is “carrying the first equipment to establish a temporary pier to deliver vital humanitarian supplies,” it said.

On March 9, 2024, U.S. Army Vessel (USAV) General Frank S. Besson (LSV-1) from the 7th Transportation Brigade (Expeditionary), 3rd Expeditionary Sustainment Command, XVIII Airborne Corps, departed Joint Base Langley-Eustis en route to the Eastern Mediterranean less than 36 hours… pic.twitter.com/X70uttuY9J— U.S. Central Command (@CENTCOM) March 10, 2024

Biden’s announcement in his State of the Union address on Thursday followed UN warnings of widespread famine among Gaza’s 2.3 million Palestinians five months after Israel launched its offensive in the narrow strip in response to an attack by Hamas militants. Gaza has no port infrastructure. The UN has warned that famine in Gaza is “almost inevitable” and children are starving to death.

UN agencies have said aid deliveries by land and air have proved difficult and dangerous. The World Food Programme had to pause land deliveries after its convoys came under gunfire and looting. There were reports that five people had been killed by a falling aid package when its parachute failed to open properly.

The US initially plans to use Cyprus, which is offering a process for screening cargo that will include Israeli officials, removing the need for security checks in Gaza. Most of Gaza’s people are now internally displaced, with severe bottlenecks in aid deliveries at land border checkpoints. Gaza has been under an Israeli navy blockade since 2007, when Hamas took control of the enclave. There have been few direct sea arrivals since then.

One of the options under consideration is for the military to provide a floating pier called a JLOTS, or Joint Logistics-Over-the-Shore, another U.S. official said on the condition of anonymity to discuss the options before a decision has been made. The large floating pier allows supplies to be delivered without having a fixed port in place, alleviating the need for troops on a shore dock. Ships can sail to the pier, secured by anchors, and dock there.

ALSO READ: EU fights anti-Ukraine propaganda ahead of vote

Previous Story

Netanyahu defies Biden’s ‘red line’

Next Story

Blinken discusses Haiti crisis with Kenyan President

Latest from -Top News

Indian-American Takes Office as Head of NIH

Born in Kolkata, India, Dr. Bhattacharya earned both his BA and MA degrees in economics from Stanford University, followed by a doctorate in medicine and a PhD in economics from the same

Trump-Putin bhai, bhai

The closer Trump and Putin get Britain, France and other Western countries which, since the end of the Second World War, have seen America as an ally, will have to rethink their

‘Harry is a bully’

Sophie Chandauka says duke unleashed ‘Sussex machine’ but source close to ex-trustees claims accusation baseless The chair of a charity established by Prince Harry has accused him of “harassment and bullying at
Go toTop

Don't Miss

Aid Access to Gaza Severely Hampered, Says UN

Shortly after its reopening on May 8, militants fired eight

US Thwarts Palestine’s UN Membership Bid

Deputy Permanent Representative Robert Wood asserted his country supports a