By Luis De Jesus
Apr 27, 2024, 10:35 PM EDT
The Israeli Army announced this Saturday that the floating dock built with the support of the US military near Gaza will be operational in early May and will be able to receive humanitarian aid.
According to military spokesman Nadav Shoshani during a press conference for international media, the dock will connect Gaza with the port, and the goods will be inspected in Cyprus before being distributed in the Palestinian enclave by international organizations, EFE published.
In addition, a remote-controlled hydraulic gate system is built to improve operational and logistical flexibility. Extensive electrical work is being carried out to support the installation and accommodate the arrival of aid by land and sea.
Shoshani highlighted that this effort aims to increase the arrival of aid to the northern Gaza Strip, devastated after more than 200 days of a conflict started by the Hamas terrorist group and more than 34,300 deaths.
The amount of merchandise transported is estimated between 90 and 150 trucks per day.
The Israeli Army reiterated its commitment to facilitating the entry of humanitarian aid, in response to complaints from international organizations, including the UN, about Israel’s use of famine as a weapon of war.
Security for the project, which occupies 0.27 square kilometers, is provided by the Israeli Navy and a brigade of reservists who secure the area from the ground.
Shoshani said that since the start of the war in Gaza on October 7, some 25,000 trucks have entered the enclave, approximately 122 a day, a figure significantly lower than the average of close to half a thousand before the conflict.
The head of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, Phillipe Lazzarini, reported that truck traffic with humanitarian aid to Gaza has improved in April, reaching a peak of 360 units on the 22nd, which he considered a positive trend.
He also noted that for the first time in many days, these trucks were not robbed by people desperate to access the cargo, in a Gaza, where more than 1 million people remain on the brink of famine.
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