The floating ship program, announced by President Biden in March, administration officials predicted would allow 2 million meals a day to reach starving Palestinians caught in the crossfire between Israeli military forces and Hamas militants.
Speaking during Gaza’s State of the Union address, the president said the scope of suffering and starvation in Gaza made the U.S. mission a moral imperative, and he insisted no U.S. troops would go ashore — seemingly trying to find a balance between putting The war’s civilian toll was exacerbated by the way Americans were harmed and idled by the famine.
But once the operation, at a cost of $230 million, Faced with countless problems. Constantly rough seas battered and damaged the structure, forcing repeated shutdowns of operations. Importantly, aid teams expected to distribute food upon reaching land were reluctant to do so, citing continued fears for the safety of their workers as the war’s staggering civilian casualties continued to mount.
The operation has sent about 20 million pounds of food ashore since it began on May 17 — part of what humanitarian groups say is needed after Israeli officials resisted U.S. and international demands to allow Gaza into Gaza by land.
This is a growing story. It will be updated.
