Gaza-based militants attack Israeli forces preparing for US pier
Gaza-based militants launched mortar rounds on Wednesday at Israeli forces making preparations for the U.S.-led effort to establish a new maritime aid route for Gaza, according to three U.S. officials.
No American equipment was damaged as the U.S.-led project — which will establish a pier a few miles offshore as well as a causeway anchored to the beach to expand access to humanitarian aid — is not yet complete, said one of the officials. All were granted anonymity to discuss sensitive plans.
But the attack came as U.S. military personnel were scheduled to soon begin construction of the pier, which the U.S. hopes will drastically expand the amount of aid that can reach the enclave. The Pentagon has said the project will be operational by the end of the month or early May, and U.S. military ships are standing by to start the work.
It’s not clear whether the militants knew what they were attacking, said the first U.S. official, adding that they may have simply seen a “target of opportunity” to strike the Israel Defense Forces.
A “small number of mortars” caused “minimal damage” in Gaza in the vicinity of the “marshalling yard area for humanitarian assistance that will soon be delivered by sea,” said one of the officials, a member of the U.S. military. The attack occurred before U.S. personnel began constructing the floating pier, the official said, noting that “there will be no U.S. forces on the ground in Gaza.”
The attack does not delay efforts for the maritime corridor, and effort is still on schedule to begin initial operations in early May, the military official said.
The IDF confirmed in a statement that militants from various groups in the Gaza Strip attacked “the engineering work area in the northern Gaza Strip.”
The IDF did not specifically mention the U.S.-led effort but said the work “is being carried out as part of IDF efforts, in cooperation with international partners, to expand Humanitarian aid to Gazan civilians.”
The mortar rounds struck the area where preparations for the project were getting underway, said the third U.S. official.
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GUNS N GEAR
Let the low IQ MF’ers starve themselves to death. When the Pro Hamas sympathizers realize they are all going to slowly die, then maybe, just maybe the dim light bulb will go off in their feeble brains and realize how stupid they really are, allowing 4th century mentality Hamas followers to control everything in Gaza. Criticism of human suffering abuses? Tuff schit, they have been led down this ignorant path to self destruction since they first allowed the PLO, now Hamas, to try and genocide the Israeli population. FAFO to the Nth degree. Aloha Snackbar, bitches.
I hope that they burn it to the waterline. That dock is going to be used to transport Hamas “refugees” here to America. A pox on both sides in this war. We’re paying both sides of this and I wish we’d mind our own damned business for once. 9 billion of the grift-I mean aid-to Israel is going to the Palestinians, which is Hamas. Our entire government is one big grift, and we pay for it.