Biden's Gaza Pier Falls Apart, Halting U.S. Military Shipments

The U.S. Department of Defense announced on Tuesday that it has halted the use of President Joe Biden's $320 million pier in Gaza due to significant structural failures. The controversial project, intended to facilitate humanitarian aid, has faced criticism following its rapid deterioration.

Sabrina Singh, the Pentagon’s deputy press secretary, explained during a press conference that the pier suffered extensive damage. “A perfect storm of high sea states and a North African weather system came in at the same time, leading to the pier’s failure,” Singh stated. The U.S. Military plans to remove the pier from Gaza and transport it to Israel for repairs, a process expected to take at least a week.

Key Points:

• Structural Collapse
  Video footage captured the pier sinking, with commentary in Hebrew mocking its failure. The pier became disconnected and swamped, leading to halted operations.

• Military Response
  The Israeli Navy will assist in moving vessels affected by the pier’s collapse. Efforts to recover U.S. military vessels that ran aground near Gaza and Ashkelon are ongoing, with no injuries reported among personnel.

• Operational Disappointments
  Despite the deployment of a thousand U.S. service members, the pier has underperformed, offloading only 820 tons of aid in a week. Approximately one-third of the aid was hijacked and stolen.

The pier's failure is a significant setback for the Biden administration, which has faced scrutiny over the project's cost and effectiveness. Three U.S. service members sustained injuries during operations supporting the aid mission, including one in critical condition.

With the pier now non-operational, the focus shifts to repairing and possibly reassessing the project's future viability. This incident underscores the challenges and risks associated with large-scale infrastructure projects in volatile regions.

Please share this article or subscribe to our newsletter for more updates.