A top Republican is sounding the alarm about ‘serious’ consequences of President Biden’s plan to establish an emergency floating port off Gaza to help get more humanitarian into the war-torn region.
During his State of the Union address, Biden ordered the US military to send thousands of US troops on ships with armed escort to build a temporary pier off Gaza.
“I am directing the US military to lead an emergency mission to establish a temporary pier in the Mediterranean off the coast of Gaza that can receive large shipments of food, water, medicine and temporary shelters,” the president said last week.
“No American boots will be on the ground,” Biden promised. ‘A temporary jetty will enable a massive increase in the amount of humanitarian aid entering Gaza every day.’
The former special forces officer, Rep. However, Michael Waltz, R-Fla., fired off a letter to Biden, obtained by DailyMail.com, in which he said he “cannot readily imagine a more potentially disastrous American policy toward Gaza.” The risk seems enormous.’
A map of the Gaza region. Threats to US military personnel will intensify as they build the port off the coast of the war-torn region
During his State of the Union address, Biden ordered the US military to send thousands of US troops on ships with armed escort to build a temporary pier off Gaza
Waltz has yet to receive a response from the White House regarding his concerns.
He says the biggest problems remain with the distribution of the aid, as Hamas terrorists are likely to intercept it before it reaches the hands of civilians.
“The problem has been distribution, and distribution is what matters. This is a product, if you will, of the commercialization of aid: criminal gangs take it, loot it, resell it,’ Waltz wrote.
In addition, the congressman, who serves on the House Armed Services Committee, also questions how the military will be able to ‘maintain security’ over shipments at the dock, including intercepting lethal Iranian aid and missile components.
“This kind of smuggled lethal aid is precisely why Israel is in such danger from Hamas and why we must do everything to ensure that additional Iranian weapons do not reach Gaza,” he says, calling the operation a “gross misprioritization of the United States”. military resources.’
“It is unclear how this operation will address the six remaining US citizens among the more than 134 hostages still in the hands of Hamas,” he adds.
Waltz has yet to receive a response from the White House regarding his concerns, but he is demanding a detailed briefing on the operational plan immediately.
In addition, the threats to US military personnel will be increased when they establish the port.
A reporter asked Pentagon press secretary Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder last week if the Pentagon expected Hamas to ‘try to shoot at them, on the operation?’
Ryder replied, “Look, I mean, it’s definitely a risk.”
“But if Hamas really cares about the Palestinian people, then again one would hope that this international mission to deliver aid to people who need it would be able to happen unhindered,” Ryder continued.
During the State of the Union, Biden added that Israel “must also do its part” to better facilitate aid to Gaza.
‘To Israel’s leadership I say this: Humanitarian aid cannot be a secondary consideration or a bargaining chip. Protecting and saving innocent lives must be a priority,’ the president said.
Children carry kitchen utensils as they walk towards a food distribution point in Gaza
Biden administration officials offered no timeline for when the pier will be built or where exactly it will be located, but said its construction will allow more shipments of food, medicine and other essential items to be delivered to the 2.2 million Palestinians.
They said the White House will coordinate with the Israelis on security on the ground and with the United Nations and humanitarian groups to get aid delivered.
The temporary pier will allow for hundreds of additional truckloads of assistance each day, the officials said. It will be an additional route for humanitarian aid, which is currently limited to two land crossings to southern Gaza.
Other countries will be involved in the construction, but it is unclear if Israel will be.
The project could take more than 30 to 60 days to build and would involve hundreds or thousands of American troops on ships just off the coast. It will also require armed escort and other protective measures.
One of the main military units involved in the construction will be the Army’s 7th Transportation Brigade (Expeditionary), from Joint Base Eustis-Langley, Va., near Norfolk, U.S. Defense Department officials told the New York Times.
Humanitarian aid drops over northern Gaza – US joins airdrops
The supplies are being dropped from a plane down to Gaza
Palestinians carry or transport some personal belongings on carts as they flee Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza Strip
Biden has already ordered US airlifts of aid, which the military has carried out.
A famine has not yet been declared for Gaza, but 20% of households suffer from extreme food shortages, 30% of children suffer from acute malnutrition and 2 in 10,000 people die per day from direct starvation or the interaction of malnutrition and disease ,” the World Food Program said.
The administration said it was imperative to get help on the ground as soon as possible — and that it would go around Israel, its longtime ally, to do so.
The White House is also working to arrange a cease-fire between Israel and Hamas to release hostages and bring in aid more easily.
Biden said during the State of the Union that he has been working ‘non-stop’ to establish an immediate ceasefire that will last for six weeks.
That would allow time “to get all the prisoners released — all the hostages released and to get the hostages home,” he said.
It would also “ease the intolerable an-humanitarian crisis and build towards a lasting — one more — something more lasting.”