The United Kingdom is considering deploying British troops to deliver aid to the Gaza Strip following the construction of an offshore floating pier by the United States military, the BBC has claimed.
A report from Britain’s public broadcaster, citing unnamed government sources, the UK is making plans to send soldiers to drive aid trucks from the soon-to-be-completed pier to a floating causeway to the shores of Gaza.
While the BBC noted that no final decision had been made, with Prime Minister Rishi Sunak yet to give his approval, the report came after a senior military official from the United States said that there would be no American “boots on the ground” and that a so far unnamed third-party country will supply the manpower to drive the trucks and deliver the aid.
“We have a third party who will be driving the trucks down the pier,” the U.S. military official said. “Just a point of emphasis, there will be no US military boots on the ground. So, a third party is driving those trucks.”
The UK has already been deeply involved in the project, with the Royal Navy providing a ship that will help house American military personnel working on the construction of the pier and the UK Hydrographic Office giving analysis of the Gaza shoreline to help plan its construction.
Additionally, British military officials have also been tasked with assisting in the screening of aid packages in Florida and Cyprus before them being sent to Gaza.
Although the floating pier is yet to be completed, the Biden administration is hoping that the Joint Logistics Over-the-Shore (JLOTS) operation will begin delivering aid to the region as soon as early May, with up to 150 trucks per day coming via the sea route. This is on top of the 220 trucks full of aid being delivered daily by land into Gaza.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) has vowed to provide “security and logistics support for the JLOTS initiative… to enhance the entry of humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip”.
However, with British troops potentially manning the frontline of the effort, they may be more susceptible to attacks from the Islamist Hamas terrorists that control the area.
Indeed, on Wednesday, Palestinian terrorists reportedly fired mortar shells at the construction site of the pier, despite the project potentially being able to help desperate civilians in the area.
However, there are also questions about how much the project will actually help in getting aid to needy Palestinian civilians, with Jerusalem previously pointing out that there is currently no limit to the amount of aid allowed into Gaza by land and that the actual problem is that Hamas steals the aid to enrich itself.
Without confirming the plans to send British troops to deliver the aid, UK Defence Secretary Grant Shapps said: “It is critical we establish more routes for vital humanitarian aid to reach the people of Gaza, and the UK continues to take a leading role in the delivery of support in coordination with the U.S. and our international allies and partners.”