WHO official: US-built pier in Gaza not sufficient in delivering aid to Palestinians

By Ahmed Hatem and Kareem Chehayeb The Associated Press

6 days ago

Hanan Balkhy, the head of the World Health Organization’s Eastern Mediterranean region, speaks during an interview with the Associated Press in Cairo, Egypt, Monday, June 24, 2024. A senior official with the U.N. health agency says the reconnected U.S.-built pier off the coast of the Gaza Strip cannot supply Palestinians with anywhere near the level of aid they need. Dr. Hanan Balkhy, head of the World Health Organization’s Eastern Mediterranean region, made the remarks after the U.S. military began delivering aid through the floating pier again, after it was removed a second time because of rough seas. (AP Photo/Tarek Wajeh)

FILE – This image provided by the U.S. Army shows trucks loaded with humanitarian aid from the United Arab Emirates and the United States Agency for International Development cross the Trident Pier before arriving on the beach on the Gaza Strip, May 17, 2024. The U.S.-built pier to bring food to Gaza is facing one of its most serious challenges yet. The United Nations is deciding if it can keep safely delivering supplies from the U.S. sea route to starving Palestinians (Staff Sgt. Malcolm Cohens-Ashley/U.S. Army via AP, File)

FILE – This image provided by U.S. Central Command, shows the U.S.-built floating pier being used to facilitate aid deliveries to the Gaza Strip, May 16, 2024. U.S. officials said Friday, June 14, 2024, that the pier will be detached from Gaza’s coast for the second time in a month due to rough seas, raising questions about the viability of the sea route. (U.S. Central Command via AP, File)

The reconnected U.S.-built pier off the coast of the Gaza Strip cannot supply Palestinians with anywhere near the level of aid they need, the head of the World Health Organization’s Eastern Mediterranean region said Monday.

Dr. Hanan Balkhy made the remarks after the U.S. military began delivering aid through the floating pier again, after it was removed a second time because of rough seas.

“The pier has supported a little bit, but it’s not to the scale that is needed by any stretch of the imagination,” Balkhy told The Associated Press in an interview. “So we need to emphasize on the land routes to ensure the amount and the quantity and the efficiency.”

The organization says that since Israel launched its ground operation into Rafah, aid delivery had declined by 67 percent, with over 50 WHO trucks stuck on the Egyptian side of the crossing into the southern city. Meanwhile, just three trucks were allowed into Gaza through the Kerem Shalom crossing.

Israel says it has allowed hundreds of truckloads of aid through the crossing, but says the U.N. has failed to pick it up. The U.N. says it is too dangerous for trucks to move through the area due to rampant lawlessness.