Biden announces emergency port for Gaza aid

The US military will establish a temporary port off Gaza's coast to bring in desperately needed aid, President Joe Biden announced Thursday, in a major operation as Israel holds up deliveries on the ground.

Announcing the initiative in his annual State of the Union address, Biden pleaded with Israel to let more assistance into the blockaded territory even as he defended its military operation against Hamas.

"Tonight, I'm directing the US military to lead an emergency mission to establish a temporary pier in the Mediterranean on the coast of Gaza that can receive large shipments carrying food, water medicine and temporary shelters," Biden told the joint session of Congress.

"A temporary pier will enable a massive increase in the amount of humanitarian assistance getting in Gaza," Biden said.

While led by the US military, the operation will not put US troops on the ground in Gaza, he said.

The aid operation comes after the United States carried out several days of airdrops of aid into Gaza, coordinated with Israel. Such massive operations generally take place in hostile or cut-off regions and have little precedent in territories controlled by a close partner and top recipient of US military aid.

Biden, whose motorcade left the White House for the Capitol after protesters demanding an end to the war gathered in nearby streets, pleaded with Israel to do more.

"To the leadership of Israel I say this: Humanitarian assistance cannot be a secondary consideration or a bargaining chip. Protecting and saving innocent lives has to be a priority," Biden said.

Biden also defended his record as a supporter of Israel, telling lawmakers that "no one has a stronger record" -- and again defended Israel's right to respond to the October 7 attack by Hamas.

The war was triggered by an unprecedented Hamas attack on southern Israel that resulted in the deaths of around 1,160 people, mostly civilians, Israeli figures show.

After the attack, Israel vowed to destroy Hamas which has ruled Gaza since 2007. More than 30,000 people have died, mostly civilians, according to the health ministry in the Hamas-ruled territory.

- Screening through Cyprus -

The temporary port will feature a pier that will "provide the capacity for hundreds of additional truckloads of assistance each day," a senior Biden administration official said.

In a key factor for Israel, the shipments will be screened by the United States and partners in European Union member Cyprus, not an Arab country. Egypt and Israel share the only land borders with Gaza.

Gazans are facing dire shortages of food, water and medicine, with the United Nations warning of the risk of famine. The entire population of 2.2 million is in "crisis" or worse levels of food insecurity, according to the World Food Program.

The UN aid coordinator for the Palestinian territory, Sigrid Kaag, told a Security Council meeting on Thursday that air and sea deliveries cannot be a "substitute" for land deliveries, which were halted after October 7 and have only gradually resumed.

In the third airdrop into Gaza in less than a week, American and Jordanian C-130 cargo planes dropped more than 38,000 meals, US Central Command said.

A statement from Jordan's military said Belgian, Dutch, Egyptian and French planes also took part in the airdrop.

The United States launched its first airdrop of food into Gaza on Saturday, providing more than 38,000 meals then also, and dropped more than 36,000 on Tuesday.

But the number of people in need of aid in Gaza is much greater than could be fed by airdrops alone.