Hamas fires MORTARS at US pier being built by the army off the coast of Gaza
- Officials say the pier will be operational next month for delivery of aid
- The mortars landed in an area that will be used as a marshalling yard, they said
Hamas terrorists fired mortars at Israeli forces in Gaza as they prepared for the arrival of a floating U.S. Army pier, American officials said Thursday, an episode that highlights the risks of building a structure for humanitarian aid.
The 72-feet wide and 270-feet platform is designed to receive shipments of food and other aid transported from Cyprus from Cyprus.
Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder, Pentagon Press Secretary, said construction began Thursday and work was unaffected by the attack.
'When it comes to the temporary pier and the causeway, those are being constructed offshore out at sea and ... essentially nowhere near mortar range so that's not what we're talking about here,' he told reporters.
'You know, we're aware of reports that a small number of mortar shells landed in the vicinity of the marshalling yard area for humanitarian assistance that will eventually be the delivery site that this pier will support.'
A U.S. Military floating pier for transporting aid with a similar setup as the one to be constructed offshore from Gaza
U.S. Army vessels left for the Eastern Mediterranean last month to establish a temporary pier for the delivery of aid to Gaza
Palestinians flock to Gaza beaches and swim
But he added that no U.S. troops were on the ground in Gaza.
Aid agencies have already expressed concerns about their safety.
A senior U.S. military official said the U.S. is on track to begin delivering aid using the new port and pier by early May.
Deliveries through the sea route initially will total about 90 trucks a day and could quickly increase to about 150 trucks daily.
The final installation of the U.S.-built causeway onto the beach at the port will be governed by the security situation, which is assessed daily.
The Israeli Defense Force has a brigade — thousands of soldiers — as well as ships and aircraft dedicated to protecting the deliveries.
The 72-feet wide and 270-feet platform is designed to receive shipments of food and other aid transported from Cyprus.
Gazans enjoying the beach
A map of the Gaza region
Airdrops of food over Gaza
While U.S. troops will not be deployed inside Gaza, U.S. officials say, security analysts have raised concerns about an array of threats, including speedboats packed with explosives, divers swimming in with mines and incoming rockets.
Gen. Charles Q. Brown Jr., chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said
“Nothing we do is risk-free”.
Sen. Roger Wicker (Miss.), the Senate Armed Services Committee’s top Republican, doubled down on his earlier criticism of the mission, saying after news of the mortar attack circulated that the plan was “ill-conceived from the start.”
“The risks to Americans will only intensify,” Wicker said in a statement. “President Biden should never have put our men and women in this position, and he should abandon this project immediately before any U.S. troops are injured.”
Trucks coming over the pier will be loaded and inspected in Cyprus.
The mortar attack spotlighted the various ways the aid mission could be strained or halted.
Mortars are not an ideal weapon in this instance because they are not very accurate, and if enough are fired, eventually one may strike.
“You put a round on any of that,” he said, “and it will stop things.”
A United Nations team in the Gaza Strip visiting the site for the pier and the staging area for maritime aid operations had to seek shelter in a bunker "for some time" after the area came under fire.
Two rounds landed about 100 meters away.
The attack took place while United Nations officials were touring the area. During the attack, the UN officials entered protected spaces.
This is further proof of the continuous attempts made by the terrorist organizations in the Gaza Strip to systematically harm humanitarian efforts, endangering the lives of UN workers.
The attack marks a shaky start to the construction of the pier, a project that the U.S. is spearheading to surge humanitarian aid into Gaza. A Hamas official told The Associated Press on Wednesday that the militant group will attack any foreign military presence involved with the port project.
Aid groups are making it clear that they have broad concerns about their safety.
Hamas said the group would consider forces from any other country — stationed by the pier to guard it as “an occupying force and aggression,” and that they would attack it. Hamas rejects the possibility of any non-Palestinians being in Gaza.
Several pieces of American engineering equipment were damaged in the mortar attack. In addition, one person was injured.
Former Defense Secretary Mark Esper indicated he thinks the mission is more dangerous than current leaders are acknowledging
“So they’re quite open to both direct fire, think about rifles and machine guns, and also indirect fire, which are mortars and artillery,” Esper said on CNN. “And, of course, you could shoot mortars and artillery from miles and miles away without attribution and cause harm to U.S. forces, kill service members. If not that, you could destroy the pier quite easily and certainly disrupt operations.”
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