(RepublicanJournal.org) – The Biden administration’s big idea to deliver aid to Gaza was for the US Navy to build a pier off the coast of the Palestinian enclave where ships could unload and send supplies straight to the beach. However, the pier hasn’t been a huge success. Since it was set up it’s been plagued by security worries, damage, and bad weather, and the Navy wants to shut it down early. Now Pentagon inspectors are investigating what went wrong.
On June 27, the internal watchdogs at the Defense Department and the US Agency for International Development (USAID) launched a joint investigation into the modular pier the US Navy, US Army, and Royal Fleet Auxiliary built off the coast of Gaza in May. It is designed to deliver aid directly from ships to the people of the territory. However, it’s only been operating for around two weeks of the five since it was completed, and it’s delivered hundreds of tons of aid instead of the thousands planned. The DoD and USAID Offices of Inspector General want to assess why the pier has underperformed so badly.
In a statement issued by the Pentagon, the DoD’s inspectorate said the “coordinated, independent” investigations by the offices will look at the effectiveness of the pier and “address the challenges associated with this mission.” The investigation comes as aid officials say the pier probably will never bring in as much food as promised, and rumors spread that it could be shut down early.
When the pier was built, the Biden administration said it should be able to operate until the weather deteriorates in September, but it’s already been closed several times for minor damage — and in early June it had to be towed to an Israeli port for repairs after a storm damaged it badly. It’s also been moved three times in an attempt to find a safer location where it won’t be damaged again.
The administration wants to keep the pier running, but Republicans think it’s a bad idea and Israel is pointing out that it’s already allowing aid in through Gaza’s land crossings anyway.
Copyright 2024, RepublicanJournal.org
