Pentagon suspends aid deliveries to Gaza pier after weather accidents

The Pentagon said on Tuesday it had suspended the delivery of humanitarian aid to Gaza via its floating pier following incidents in which four U.S. military vessels ran aground, a U.S. soldier was seriously injured and parts of the structure were torn loose in bad weather.

Because of the damage, the U.S. military, with Israeli help, must dismantle parts of the pier on the Gaza coast, rebuild them in the nearby Israeli port of Ashdod, and then transport them back to the Gaza coast and reconnect them, said Sabrina Singh, a Pentagon spokeswoman. That process will take at least a week, temporarily closing the pier as a way to deliver humanitarian aid to Gaza civilians while Israel continues its months-long military operation against militant Hamas.