Britain to help US construct ‘emergency’ pier to get aid into Gaza, Lord Cameron says

Britain will help the US build a “temporary pier” in Gaza to allow hundreds of extra daily truckloads of aid into the strip, Lord Cameron has announced.

The foreign secretary said people in Gaza are in “desperate humanitarian need” and the UK will join with the US and partners to open “a maritime corridor to deliver aid directly”.

“We continue to urge Israel to allow more trucks into Gaza as the fastest way to get aid to those who need it,” he added.

It comes a day after Lord Cameron called for much more to be done to help get aid to Gaza as he warned of a looming humanitarian catastrophe.

Speaking during a visit to Berlin the former PM said: “If we want to avoid famine, disease and help people in Gaza we need 500 [aid] trucks a day.”

Lord Cameron also urged Hamas to accept a hostage deal on offer after its delegation left talks in Cairo without a deal for a Gaza ceasefire.

Asked whether the UK is doing enough to pressure Israel to allow aid into Gaza, the Foreign Secretary told a press conference in Berlin: “I think the Israelis have to really understand that this is on the brink of being a desperate situation in terms of disease and famine, and so the time for doing more is now.

“We also need to make sure that at the same time as saying that, we say to Hamas that they should release these hostages…

“In all the thoughts we have about the aid getting into Gaza, and I would argue no-one is doing more than Britain and Germany to pile that pressure on, let’s remember that there’s a group of people that could stop this conflict right now. And that is Hamas.”

Joe Biden is ordering US forces to conduct an “emergency” mission that will see them construct a seaport on the Gaza coast to allow a new influx of humanitarian aid into the territory as Israel’s war on Hamas enters its sixth month.

He confirmed the decision in his State of the Union speech overnight, with a senior official in his administration saying it will “get life-saving humanitarian aid into Gaza to alleviate the suffering of innocent Palestinians who have nothing to do with Hamas”.

Overnight, Mr Biden said: “I’m directing the U.S. military to lead an emergency mission to establish a temporary pier in the Mediterranean on the Gaza coast that can receive large ships carrying food, water, medicine and temporary shelters.

“No U.S. boots will be on the ground. This temporary pier would enable a massive increase in the amount of humanitarian assistance getting into Gaza every day. But Israel must also do its part.

“Israel must allow more aid into Gaza and ensure that humanitarian workers aren’t caught in the cross fire. 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.

“As we look to the future, the only real solution is a two-state solution. I say this as a lifelong supporter of Israel and the only American president to visit Israel in wartime. There is no other path that guarantees Israel’s security and democracy.

“There is no other path that guarantees Palestinians can live with peace and dignity.”

British aid packages have previously been air-dropped into Gaza in a joint operation with the Jordanian military, and the Government has continued to work on finding alternative routes for supplies to reach the territory.

The UK Government has also called for a “humanitarian pause” in the fighting to enable aid to get into Gaza and hostages held by Hamas to be released.

Last week, the Commons International Development Committee warned that a famine in Gaza would be unavoidable without changes to allow more aid to get into the region.

The cross-party committee said any ceasefire of less than 30 days would not be enough to get sufficient food into Gaza, while US vice-president Kamala Harris has suggested a six-week ceasefire is within reach.