WASHINGTON, 22 May. - (ANA) - A US Defense Department spokesman has said that none of the 569 tons of humanitarian assistance that has arrived at a US-built floating pier in the Gaza Strip has been formally distributed.

 

While some of the aid coming off the pier has made it to warehouses, trucks have been intercepted by hoards of desperate Palestinians after the aid left the loading area.

 

“I don’t believe so,” Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder said in response to a question about whether any of the aid had been delivered yet.

 

“We fully appreciate and recognize that land routes are the optimal way to get aid,” said Ryder. “It’s also important to remember that this is a combat zone and that it is a complex operation.”

 

It comes as the UN World Food Programme warned that the $320m (£250m) project may fail unless Israel starts providing the conditions humanitarian groups need to operate safely.   - (ANA) -

 

AB/ANA/22 May 2024 - - -