A floating dock and causeway that will be used to deliver critical humanitarian aid by sea to Gaza is expected to take at least a month, or possibly two, to be fully operational, Pentagon press secretary Maj. Gen. Patrick said Friday. Ryder. Ryder also said construction will likely require up to 1,000 U.S. military personnel to complete.
How it will work: The sea corridor will be used by multiple nations, but the floating dock off the coast of Gaza will be managed by the US government and built by the US military, including Navy and Army personnel.
The dock will allow ships to unload aid, which will then be transported via a causeway to Gaza that will also be built by the U.S. military, officials said. The United States is still trying to determine who will be on the other side of the road to receive the aid and distribute it within the strip, they said.
How it developed: The temporary dock concept was developed in part by an organization called Fogbow, according to a person familiar with the planning, which is an advisory group made up of former military, United Nations, USAID and CIA personnel.
What Biden says: In his announcement on Thursday, US President Joe Biden promised that “there will be no US troops on the ground.” When pressed by reporters at Joint Base Andrews on Friday about who would provide security at the port, Biden said it would be the Israelis.
Biden also told reporters on Friday that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu needs to allow more aid to reach Gaza.
Read more about the port plan logistics.
CNN's Kevin Liptak contributed reporting to this publication.
