The Biden administration claims the US is leading international efforts to deliver humanitarian relief to Gaza, asserting that supplies are “flowing to Palestinians” through the military’s pier operation, Responsible Statecraft wrote on Wednesday.
On Monday, Pentagon spokesperson Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder announced that 1,573 tons of aid had been delivered from the pier to the beach, including 492 tons since it reopened on Saturday after the pier broke apart because of bad weather last month. However, these supplies aren’t reaching Palestinians and never really have.
Since the pier on the Gaza coast became operational on May 17, hardly any food has reached starving Gazans. The World Food Program (WFP) reported that only 15 trucks from the pier arrived at its Gaza warehouse for distribution between May 17-18, and no aid was delivered from May 19-21.
In Rafah, no aid will reach Palestinians as long as the Israeli occupation continues its aggression. On that note, the WFP halted all deliveries to Rafah on May 21 due to the Israeli invasion of the city.
On Sunday, the WFP announced it paused humanitarian aid distribution from the pier due to security concerns after a US-backed Israeli massacre killed nearly 300 Palestinians the previous day. WFP, the UN agency coordinating deliveries, stated that the 492 tons of aid the Pentagon mentioned will remain in warehouses until further notice, warning that all humanitarian operations in Gaza are on the brink of collapse.
However, the $320 million (revised down to $230 million) “maritime humanitarian corridor” announced by Biden during his State of the Union address in March is not effective, particularly for Palestinians. It serves the Biden administration’s interests by creating the appearance of “US assistance” to civilians, while supporting Israeli policies that harm and deprive them.
According to Responsible Statecraft, the pier serves as a humanitarian cover for an inhumane policy.
A closer look at the pier
Biden administration officials defend the pier, stating it’s not a failure or public relations stunt, but critics disagree.
On May 17, the first day the pier was operational, Jeremy Konyndyk, former USAID official and current president of Refugees International, described it as “humanitarian theater,” emphasizing its focus on political optics rather than genuine assistance. Konyndyk added that while the president tweets about a humanitarian gimmick, actual humanitarian capacity in Gaza deteriorates.
In response to a press question about Konyndyk’s comments on May 23, Dan Dieckhaus, director of USAID’s Levant humanitarian response, stated, “I would not call getting enough food and other supplies for tens of thousands of people for a month theater within a couple of days…everyone’s entitled to their opinion, but I think we are already making a meaningful contribution to the overall effort.”
According to Responsible Statecraft, before the US pier opened, more food aid reached Gazans. The Rafah crossing closure in May resulted in 66,181 fewer pallets of food reaching Palestinians compared to April. Meanwhile, food and other aid are piling up outside Gaza at the Rafah land crossing.
The politics of the pier
A new report from the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and World Food Program warned that 1.1 million Palestinians could face starvation by mid-July, mainly due to “the devastating impact of the ongoing conflict” and “the heavy restrictions on access and goods.”
The Biden administration is making the situation worse by providing weapons to “Israel” every 36 hours and continues to allow “Israel” to obstruct aid by not using these shipments.
Responsible Statecraft notes that “Israel’s” dependence on US arms and political support gives Biden significant influence over its actions in Gaza. The current situation reflects Biden’s policy decisions, with “Israel” using US-made munitions to bomb civilian areas as aid delivery to Palestinians is severely hindered, leading to imminent famine in Gaza.
Instead of addressing these conditions with the Israeli government, Biden instructed the US military to construct a pier.
