Aid to Gaza by sea

[ombugge]

Issued a few minutes ago (12:30 hrs. CET 08.03.24):

Joint Statement endorsing the activation of a maritime corridor to deliver...

The delivery of humanitarian assistance directly to Gaza by sea will be complex, and our nations will continue to assess and adjust our efforts to ensure we deliver aid as effectively as possible. This maritime corridor can—and must—be part of a sustained effort to increase the flow of humanitarian aid and commercial commodities into Gaza through all possible routes. We will continue to work with Israel to expand deliveries by land, insisting that it facilitate more routes and open additional crossings to get more aid to more people. We affirm that protecting civilian lives is a key element of international humanitarian law that must be respected. And together, we must all do more to ensure aid gets to people who desperately need it."

[ombugge]

While Biden wants to build a port in Gaza:

The facility would accommodate large ships carrying food, water, medical supplies and temporary shelters.
Washington will work with European and regional partners and allies to build an international coalition of countries that would contribute capabilities and funds, the officials said.
An Israeli official said Israel “fully supports the deployment of a temporary dock” on Gaza’s coast and the operation “will be carried out with full coordination between the two parties.”

Source:

US to Build Temporary Port in Gaza to Deliver Aid

He is apparently not waiting for Congress to approve his plan:

Biden will tell Congress he is ordering the U.S. military “to undertake an emergency mission to establish a port in Gaza, working with like-minded countries and humanitarian partners,” one official said.

[Dipsea]

Its actually a good.move, the amount of aid needed in Gaza couldnt be done with cargo planes and trucks.

[spowiednick]

What for?

[ombugge]

Because children are already dying from malnutrition.Isn’t that a good enough reason to try anything?

Most of Gaza’s coast is beach so landing crafts can deliver large quantities of food and other aid directly to beaches within the Gaza strip, weather permitting.
The problem is how to ensure that it reach the recipients that need it the most since there are no organized distribution system in place.(??)

EU sees maritime aid corridor to Gaza opening this weekend amid famine fears

EU Commission President von der Leyen said a pilot test run of food aid collected by a charity group and supported by the United Arab Emirates could be leaving Cyprus as early as Friday.

Some aid agencies say discussions of elaborate air and sea routes to bring aid into Gaza are a distraction when Israel is restricting existing access routes by land.
“There’s an easier, more efficient way of bringing in assistance and that is via the road crossings that connect Israel with Gaza,” said Juliette Touma, spokesperson for UNRWA, the UN relief agency for the Palestinians.

Michael Fakhri, a UN special rapporteur on the right to food, told reporters in Geneva, that it was “absurd” that Washington was discussing complicated new routes to reach a territory blockaded by its own ally.
“From a humanitarian perspective, from an international perspective, from a human rights perspective, it is absurd in a dark, cynical way,” he said.

PS> One of these should be able to bring a large amount of supplies to the beaches in Gaza:

RFA Mounts Bay | Royal Navy

[ombugge]

Maybe a good reach to use Landing crafts?:

Airdropped aid parcels kill 5 in Gaza as desperation for food surges

• Palestinians say what they need is the US to stop giving weapons to Israel after President Joe Biden announced a plan to build a temporary pier on Gaza’s coastline to allow aid to enter. The plan has been criticised as “not realistic” and a “distraction”.

[yacht_sailor]

The HUGE problem here is the only authority there is Hamas, which you will have to deal with and Israel will feel free to blow them up no matter who is near them.

[Lew]

Maybe the ships should go via the Red Sea, I wonder if the Houthis will shoot at aid ships ?

[Kennebec_Captain]

U.S. Says Building Gaza Pier 'Likely' to Take Up to 60 Days

Once operational, the port system would allow delivery about 2 million meals to Gazans daily, Ryder said.

By comparison, the U.S. military has delivered a total of about 124,000 meals during four airdrops in the past week. The latest airdrop on Friday delivered about 11,500 meals, the U.S. military said.

[Bayrunner]

@ombugge

Because children are already dying from malnutrition.Isn’t that a good enough reason to try anything?

That was happening before Hamas decided to attack Israel. Gaza is poor because of Hamas.

And what happens when Hamas decides to take a few shots at US troops or sailors?

[freighterman1]

Hamas will deliberately attack the American troops and vessels involved in the the undertaking. The mission is not the same as the American efforts in Somalia in the 1990s but will provide terrorists the same opportunities.

The admirals of the US Navy must be losing sleep thinking of how to protect vessels from water-drone attacks ala the Black Sea. Hamas’ leaders are losing sleep trying to figure out how to buy as many of those drones as they can in a short time.

I’m not saying the mission isn’t worth the effort. I’m just saying it will be a big target for terrorism. Doesn’t matter that without the food Palestinians will starve. Hamas knew exactly how Israel would respond to their initial attack of murder and rape. They knew Israel would go berserk. The more Palestinians suffer, the happier Hamas’ leaders are.

Their strategy is to strip world support from Israel by increasing the Palestinian body count. If they can blacken America’s nose too it’s bonus points for them.

[Ladder]

This is crazy, the US gives Israel $3.3bn per year, they should just demand that they let aid in using Israeli ports.

Israel would have to listen to US demands.

Fair enough Israel had to defend itself after the October attacks, but the collective punishment of Palestinians has gone too far.

[Capt_Phoenix]

@freighterman1

Hamas will deliberately attack the American troops and vessels involved in the the undertaking.

That would be idiotic on their part.

@freighterman1

Hamas knew exactly how Israel would respond to their initial attack of murder and rape.

Yes they did. They also know how the US will respond if they do something to us. Night and day difference in response.

@freighterman1

They knew Israel would go berserk.

Israel isn’t the US.

@freighterman1

The more Palestinians suffer, the happier Hamas’ leaders are.

True, but if Hamas attacks the US the Hamas leaders won’t be alive to be happy. Israel doesn’t know what they’re doing, the US does and Hamas knows that.

[tugsailor]

@Capt_Phoenix

True, but if Hamas attacks the US the Hamas leaders won’t be alive to be happy. Israel doesn’t know what they’re doing, the US does and Hamas knows that.

I think you have it backwards. Israel and the US both have the ability to respond to an Hamas attack.

However, only Israel has the will to respond vigorously to a Hamas attack. The US does not.

If (more likely when) US military and US aid workers are attacked and killed, the US won’t do much of anything out of concern for “innocent civilian” casualties.

[Capt_Phoenix]

@tugsailor

Israel has the will to respond vigorously to a Hamas attack.

Israel is stupid and took the bait. They aren’t killing Hamas, they’re helping Hamas by killing civilians. Yes, the US would never respond like Israel currently is, because we’re not stupid and we’ve learned from past mistakes.

@tugsailor

The US does not.

The US would take a measured approach and kill valuable targets only. Like they did to Iran after Iran’s ally killed US troops in Jordan.

[shipengr]

A temporary port system that the U.S. is seeking to build to speed up aid to Gaza will take “likely up to 60 days” to complete and involve some 1,000 troops, a Pentagon spokesperson said on Friday.

Seems like a job requiring a some amount of maritime sealift logistics…wonder how the US merchant marine is doing these days…/s

[tugsailor]

60 days? I guess the Seabees aren’t what they use to be.

[tugsailor]

Valuable targets? You mean the Hamas leaders hiding in tunnels under hospitals, schools, and mosques?

If the US cannot airdrop food without killing too many civilians, how would it take out high value targets with bombs without killing civilians?

Is it a good idea for the US to be seen as actively bombing Hamas alongside Israel?

Or do you think that the US would start taking out high value targets in Iran, like the religious leadership and the weapons plants (which is funding, arming, and to a large extent controlling Hamas, the Houthis, and every other Mideast terrorist group. Not to mention sending weapons to Putin to use against Ukraine).

[Capt_Phoenix]

@tugsailor

You mean the Hamas leaders hiding in tunnels under hospitals, schools, and mosques?

The Hamas leaders aren’t in Gaza.

[Bayrunner]

@Capt_Phoenix

Israel is stupid and took the bait

“The bait” was nearly 1200 people, including 750 civilians, getting murdered by the terrorists of Hamas.