A floating pier and causeway that will be used to deliver critical humanitarian aid by sea to Gaza is expected to take at least one month — or possibly two — to become fully operational, Pentagon press secretary Maj. Gen. Patrick Ryder said on Friday. Ryder also said the construction will likely require as many as 1,000 US military personnel to complete.
How it will work: The maritime corridor will be used by multiple nations, but the floating pier off the coast of Gaza will be run by the US government and will be constructed by the US military, including Navy and Army personnel.
The pier will allow ships to offload aid, which will then be transported across a causeway into Gaza that will also be constructed by the US military, officials said. The US is still trying to determine who will be on the other side of the causeway to receive the aid and distribute it inside the strip, they said.
How it was developed: The temporary pier concept was developed in part by an organization called Fogbow, according to a person familiar with the planning, which is an advisory group comprised of former military, United Nations, and USAID and CIA personnel.
What Biden is saying: In his announcement on Thursday, US President Joe Biden promised “no US boots will be on the ground.” When pressed Friday by reporters at Joint Base Andrews about who would provide security for the port, Biden said it would be the Israelis.
Biden also told reporters Friday that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu needs to allow more aid into Gaza.
Read more about the logistics of the port plan.
CNN’s Kevin Liptak contributed reporting to this post.
