NewsBiden declares US will construct Gaza port to facilitate humanitarian aid

Biden declares US will construct Gaza port to facilitate humanitarian aid

US President Joe Biden

Images source: © Getty Images | Chip Somodevilla

8 March 2024 11:07

While Biden supported Israel's right to "deal with Hamas", he criticized the high number of innocent victims of the conflict - he estimated it at 30,000 - and Benjamin Netanyahu's government's stance on humanitarian aid.

Creation of a port in the Gaza Strip

- Here's what I'm telling the leaders of Israel: "Humanitarian aid cannot be a secondary matter or a bargaining chip." Protecting and saving the lives of innocent people must be a priority. And as we look to the future, the only real solution is a two-state solution - said President Biden.

Biden announced on Thursday he would order the military "to undertake an extraordinary mission to establish a port in Gaza" in cooperation with other countries and organisations. This aims to create a maritime route to transfer humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip from Cyprus.

Administration representatives emphasised that the construction of the temporary port will not require the presence of American soldiers in the Gaza Strip, but it will be built near the shore.

Opening a maritime route is expected to increase the capacity for delivering aid to the equivalent of hundreds of lorries daily. This is another initiative by the administration following the commencement of drops with military food rations from military planes taking off from Jordan. This is the US administration's response to the escalating humanitarian disaster in Gaza and Israel's stance, which has limited the possibilities of land supply.

Stalemate in negotiations

During the Thursday briefing, administration representatives also addressed the prolonged negotiations concerning the ceasefire and the release of Hamas hostages. They blamed the impasse on Hamas because the terrorists refused to agree to the release of sick and elderly hostages.

Governing in the Gaza Strip, Hamas carried out an armed invasion of Israel on October 7, 2023, resulting in approximately 1,200 deaths, mostly civilians, and about 240 people were kidnapped. In the ongoing retaliatory operations by Israel, over 30,000 Palestinians have died, and at least 90% of the more than 2 million residents of the Gaza Strip have had to leave their homes. According to the UN, 2.2 million residents of the Gaza Strip are at risk of starvation.