Pier site in Gaza came under fire during UN visit

A United Nations team in the Gaza Strip visiting the site for a pier and the staging area for maritime aid operations had to seek shelter in a bunker “for some time” on Wednesday after the area came under fire, a UN spokesperson said on Thursday.

Two rounds landed about 100 meters (300 feet) away, but there were no injuries and the team was eventually able to continue the tour, UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said.

The US military has begun construction on a pier meant to boost deliveries of desperately needed aid to Gaza, the Pentagon said on Thursday.

The small coastal territory has been devastated by more than six months of Israeli bombardment and ground operations against Hamas militants, leaving the civilian population in need of humanitarian assistance to survive.

“I can confirm that US military vessels… have begun to construct the initial stages of the temporary pier and causeway at sea,” Pentagon spokesman Major General Pat Ryder told journalists.

Indications are that the pier will be operational in early May, and “everything is on course at this point,” he said.