Biden directs US military to establish aid port in Gaza as Israel-Hamas war looms over his State of the Union

By Michael Williams, CNN

Washington (CNN) — As President Joe Biden addressed Congress and the nation during his State of the Union speech on Thursday, tens of thousands of Palestinians face an increasingly harrowing humanitarian crisis – one that officials warn is hurling the territory into a famine.

Although Biden had signaled repeated optimism that a temporary ceasefire could soon offer some relief for the beleaguered territory, the prospects of that happening any time soon seemed to be growing dimmer.

Biden on Thursday announced efforts that could offer some relief: the US military will begin establishing a port in the territory that could receive large shipments of critically needed food and medical supplies.

“A temporary pier would enable a massive increase in the amount of humanitarian assistance getting into Gaza every day,” Biden said during his address on Thursday. “And 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.”

And in some of his most forceful remarks about the humanitarian crisis in Gaza since the war began, Biden sent a message to Israeli leadership.

“Humanitarian assistance cannot be a secondary consideration or a bargaining chip. Protecting and saving innocent lives has to be a priority,” Biden said.

The only real solution to the conflict, Biden added, is a two-state solution.

The announcement from Biden underscores the seriousness of the humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza, as the UN World Food Program warned that a famine is looming and 500,000 people are at risk of starvation.

At least 20 people had died as of Wednesday due to malnutrition and dehydration since the war began in Gaza, according to the territory’s Ministry of Health.

The youngest child to die of starvation and lack of medical attention was one day old, health officials in Gaza said. More than 30,000 people have been killed in Gaza since Israel began relentless ground and air attacks shortly after the October 7 attack by Hamas that killed about 1,200 people in Israel.

More than 72,000 people have been injured.

It’s not clear when the port would be up and running. It’s also not clear why the administration waited until the State of the Union to announce heightened efforts to get aid into the territory.

“The famine is deepening and will claim thousands of citizens if the aggression is not stopped and humanitarian and medical aid is not immediately entered” into Gaza, Health Ministry spokesperson Dr. Ashraf Al-Qidra said Wednesday.

Biden’s remarks come at a critical flashpoint in Israel’s war against Hamas, as the holy Muslim month of Ramadan approaches without a ceasefire in place. Biden said earlier this week that in the absence of a ceasefire when Ramadan begins, the situation in Gaza could become “very, very dangerous.”

Israel, meanwhile, has warned that they will launch a military offensive in the crowded city of Rafah in southern Gaza, where 1.5 million Palestinians are sheltering, if remaining Israeli hostages in Gaza are not returned before the start of Ramadan.

Officials were hopeful about the chance of a deal that would temporarily pause fighting while Israeli hostages in Gaza, along with Palestinians held in prison by Israel, were released.

But the killing of more than 100 Palestinian civilians after Israeli forces opened fire at a food distribution site last week in what became known as the “Flour Massacre” disrupted the pace of the peace talks, a diplomat said, adding the killings “took us back 10 steps.”

While the United Nations welcomed the news of the US military’s intent to establish an aid port, officials advocated for road access into the territory as “the only solution” to avert a starvation crisis.

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