Engineering sites where U.S. military personnel will soon begin constructing a humanitarian pier reportedly came under attack, the Israeli military and United Nations (U.N.) officials said Thursday, according to media reports.
“Various terrorist organizations” lobbed mortar rounds at efforts on the location laying the groundwork for the pier while U.N. officials were touring the area, The Wall Street Journal reported, citing the Israeli military. The U.N. officials retreated to secure spaces and no one was injured in the attack, but the incident underscored concerns about security for the roughly 1,000 U.S. troops involved in facilitating delivery of much-needed humanitarian supplies to Gaza.
The U.S. military will initiate construction as early as Saturday, defense officials said, according to the WSJ.
No organization immediately claimed responsibility for the attack, The Associated Press reported Thursday, citing U.N. officials as well as the Israeli military.
“We understand there is risk and we do everything we can to mitigate the risk by putting in capability [and] working with the Israelis,” Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Charles Q. Brown said Thursday, according to the WSJ.
U.S. troops should finish building the pier and accompanying floating causeway in 10 to 14 days, but defense officials said it could take longer if new challenges arise while the military endeavors to assemble the structure without setting foot on Gaza itself, the WSJ reported.
The Israeli military has taken responsibility for securing the beaches around the landing, according to the WSJ.
Cargo ships departing from Cyprus will ship humanitarian aid to the floating pier, where they will be unloaded and the aid transferred to smaller vessels that can ferry the aid to the causeway, the WSJ reported. Non-military vehicles will transport the cargo the rest of the way down the causeway to the shore.
Hamas threatened to oppose any foreign power involved in building the pier, a militant official told the AP.
Terrorists shot mortar fire at a humanitarian work site in northern Gaza during a visit of @UN personnel yesterday (Wed).
The @IDF ushered the UN personnel into safe spaces.
Terrorist orgs continuously disrupt humanitarian efforts while we facilitate aid to Gaza residents.
— COGAT (@cogatonline) April 25, 2024
As of Tuesday, all of the necessary vehicles and equipment for building the pier had arrived in the area and were standing by, Pentagon press secretary Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder said at a press briefing.
“We’re still, based on all indications, on track to see an operating capability by the end of this month or early May,” he said.
“Our planners have worked through the details of all the things one would expect, to include security on the ground, coordination with partners that will be supporting this effort, to include NGOs, working with USAID,” he said.
U.S. Central Command, the Pentagon and the National Security Council did not respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation’s request for comment.
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