Biden administration secures key agreement for aid distribution from US military pier being built off Gaza coast
CNN
The Biden administration has secured an agreement with a major UN agency to distribute aid from the pier the US military is constructing off the coast of Gaza, two senior US officials told CNN – a key development as the US and its allies have rushed to finalize plans for how desperately needed humanitarian aid will be distributed inside the war-torn strip.
The Biden administration has secured an agreement with a major UN agency to distribute aid from the pier the US military is constructing off the coast of Gaza, two senior US officials told CNN – a key development as the US and its allies have rushed to finalize plans for how desperately needed humanitarian aid will be distributed inside the war-torn strip. The US military is expected to finish constructing the pier early next month. The World Food Programme (WFP) will support distribution of aid from the pier following weeks of diplomatic wrangling, the organization said Saturday. “The UN has agreed to work with the US and other partners on the maritime corridor as an additional route for relief to Gaza, on the condition that humanitarian principles can be ensured and that land access is also expanded,” a spokesperson told CNN. “Our objective remains to bring as much food to starving Gazans as possible, to avert looming famine,” the spokesperson added. The US role in the effort has been complex, with the military carrying out a high-stakes construction mission in a warzone and diplomats helping to organize a dangerous and highly politicized aid distribution operation. And as the US military is beginning to set up in the eastern Mediterranean, a private American company is eyeing a similar operation nearby that will also need security and some help from the UN. The logistics have been particularly complicated because no US troops will be on the ground in Gaza — something President Joe Biden ruled out when announcing the pier last month.
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