The first shipment of humanitarian aid has arrived in Gaza via a temporary floating pier, the US military has confirmed.

US Central Command said aid trucks had begun moving ashore at about 09:00 local time (07:00 BST) on Friday.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said 8,400 plastic shelters had been delivered. About 500 tonnes of British aid including tents, hygiene kits and forklift trucks is expected to reach Gaza via the pier, built by US armed forces, in the coming weeks.

However, Mr Sunak said the maritime route was “not the only answer” to the humanitarian crisis in the enclave.

“We need to see more land routes open, including via the Rafah crossing, to ensure much more aid gets safely to civilians in desperate need of help.”

MBFC
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  • NaibofTabr
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    6 months ago

    Huh, they got this thing in place and operational in two months, that’s impressive. I definitely thought it was going to take longer.

    • Dudewitbow@lemmy.zip
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      6 months ago

      one of the few things that marks a super power is having (reletively) good logistics. almost all major corporations that sell products have to master logistics.

    • Anyolduser@lemmynsfw.com
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      6 months ago

      I heard on NPR that a lot of the key ships and equipment the army used were almost decommissioned in 2019. The last time they were used was in Haiti in 2010.

      Hopefully this convinces army brass to make the investment to maintain this capability.

      • NaibofTabr
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        6 months ago

        You mean between March and May of 2024? None so far as I can tell, though it’s hard to find specific information. HR 8034 passed the House on 20 Apr 2024, if that’s what you’re referring to, but it hasn’t passed the Senate or been signed into law yet, and in any case it is a funds appropriation bill meaning that all it does is earmark some money from the federal budget for the purpose of military aid - no material has been shipped yet based on this bill, nor will be for awhile.