How the US Military Intends to Build a Dock and Provide Food to Gaza

Although the Pentagon claims there won’t be “boots on the ground,” more than 1,000 US soldiers are anticipated to take part in the operation.

A little-known private company called Fogbow, which is controlled by former military and intelligence officers, has teamed up with the US to help do that.

Two million meals a day are to be delivered to Gaza, where the UN has declared starvation to be “almost inevitable.”

What pier configuration will the US use?

A two-lane, 1,800-foot (548-meter) causeway and pier, as well as a large floating dock composed of steel parts, are the two primary components of the proposal that need to be completed, stated the Pentagon.

The causeway will be made of interconnecting steel segments that are 40 feet (12 meters) long and joined to the beach.

Supplies are transported to the pier by cargo ships, where they are offloaded into a variety of barges and smaller boats known as logistics support vessels, or LSVs.

After that, trucks will transport the supplies into Gaza and onto land.

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The causeway will enable US Marines to avoid entering Gaza by being put together at sea and “driven” into the beach. The US has classified Hamas as a terrorist organization and is assisting its ally Israel.

The US military has previously utilized this amphibious construction project, officially known as Joint Logistics Over-the-Shore, or JLOTS, in Kuwait, Somalia, Haiti, and Central America for disaster relief operations.

Previous iterations date back to World War II, immediately after D-Day’s assault of Normandy. Similar JLOTS equipment was employed by the defense department during a large-scale exercise in Australia as recently as July of last year.

“Having an operational port is obviously preferred by the military because it makes everything much easier,” former US Marine Corps colonel Mark Cancian told. “It makes amphibious operations planning much easier.”

“But that’s not always possible, either due to a conflict situation or in a peacetime, humanitarian mission,” he added. “That’s where JLOTS comes in.”

What will Fogbow be used for, and what is it?

Fogbow is managed by Mick Mulroy, a former CIA paramilitary officer and assistant secretary of defense for the Middle East, and Sam Mundy, a former Marine Corps lieutenant colonel who previously commanded forces in the region.

The entire scope of their planned actions has never before been disclosed to the public. However, a person with knowledge of the strategy said that the main purpose of the Fogbow operation, also referred to as the Blue Beach Plan internally, is to coordinate the distribution of supplies once it reaches the Gaza coast.

As part of a plan approved by the US and Israeli administrations, the containers will be emptied and their contents placed on trucks to be transported to distribution stations farther into Gaza.

Although Fogbow has informed several countries in Europe and the Middle East about the ideas, he is still in search of funds. Longer term, Fogbow intends to establish a foundation administered by donors to assist in directing resources toward Gaza.

What measures will be taken for security?

The success of the plan, according to military analysts, depends on security against both the threat of hostile fire in a fighting zone that is still in operation and the risk of massive groups of civilians swarming the relief supplies.

Retired Rear Admiral Mark Montgomery, a 32-year US Navy veteran with experience providing humanitarian relief, stated that a “security cocoon” needs to be set up for the operation in both the neighboring shallow water and on the shore.

“You cannot have civilians getting on the pier,” said Mr Montgomery. “They could be a parent desperately looking for food for their children – or they could be trying to kill somebody. That would shut down operations.”

The Israel Defense Force (IDF) will provide “outer” security to keep large groups of people from accessing the beach and to ensure the area is secure, according to two persons with knowledge of the plan who spoke with the BBC. Local Palestinians without weapons will handle the distribution.

It is anticipated that Fogbow will not be involved in distribution and will only play a minor role in logistics.

Despite the Pentagon’s declaration that no US forces will enter Gaza, many believe the situation may be more nuanced than that.

“People are going to have to be giving guidance on the exact angles you want things to go in, or perhaps the right consistency of sand that is needed, those sorts of things,” said Montgomery.

“They will need to be there checking things out and making sure we’re anchoring in the exact right spot.”

Mr. Montgomery continued, “If the individual on the beach is not a member of the US military, they are likely an experienced contractor who is retired.”

How will the shipments alter things?

Two million meals a day might enter Gaza thanks to this temporary dock, according to the US Defense Department. This is far more than can currently be achieved through airdrops or the Rafah border crossing with Egypt.

A spokesman for the State Department, Matthew Miller, stated earlier this week that the marine option is being considered since there aren’t enough other options. However, he stated that they would keep pushing for help to arrive in trucks across land because there is no alternative.

By vehicle is the most efficient and fastest way to deliver aid to Gaza. However, humanitarian organizations claim that just a small portion of what is required is crossing due to Israeli restrictions.

According to US officials and humanitarian organizations, increasing land supplies are still the only practical way to meet demand while the pier is being constructed.

“Even in a best-case scenario, [the pier] won’t be there for close to two months as an effective delivery mechanism,” Mr Montgomery said. “We have to account for that as we handle humanitarian challenges over the next 45 days.”

Before the pier is constructed, the operation might be partially operational.Fogbow is considering dredging a beach to enable barges to approach the coast near enough so that relief supplies may be loaded onto trucks.

While so little aid is reaching the ground, others are looking at the sea option as well. At last, a Spanish vessel pulling a barge filled with 200 tons of food supplies has departed from Cyprus.