NICOSIA: Humanitarian aid for Gaza is continuing to leave Cyprus by sea and will be held in floating storage off the coast of the enclave until a US-built military pier undergoes repairs, a Cypriot government official said on Thursday.
Malnutrition is widespread in Gaza after almost eight months of war and the UN said on Wednesday the amount of aid entering the enclave had fallen by two-thirds since Israel began military operations in the enclave’s southern Rafah region this month.
The US military announced earlier in the week that a purpose-built jetty it anchored off Gaza’s coast to receive aid by sea was being temporarily removed after part of the structure broke off, two weeks after it started operating.
Cyprus government spokesperson Konstantinos Letymbiotis said the offloading of aid for the Palestinian enclave — devastated by Israel’s air and ground war against its ruling Hamas group — had slowed down but the sea corridor had not ceased operating.
“The mechanism surrounding how the floating pier works allows for the possibility of floating storage off Gaza, with offloading to resume when conditions allow,” Letymbiotis said, blaming the problem on rough seas.
The pier was announced by US President Joe Biden in March
and involved the military assembling the floating structure off
the Palestinian enclave’s Mediterranean coast. Estimated to cost $320 million for the first 90 days and involving about 1,000 US service members, it went into operation two weeks ago.
Aid from France was expected to depart for Gaza from Cyprus on Thursday, while 3,000 tons of US aid will leave early next week, Letymbiotis said.
The United Arab Emirates, Britain, the US, Romania, Italy, the European Mechanism for Civil Protection, the World Food Programme and the International Organization for Migration have already donated aid destined for the pier, he said.
Cyprus had also received interest from Japan and Singapore, as well as other EU member states.
In Washington, a Pentagon spokesperson said a portion of the pier had separated and it would be towed to the Israeli port of Ashdod for repairs. Letymbiotis said the US had indicated that the problem would be fixed in coming days and that the pier could “possibly” resume operations by the middle of next week.
Eleven ship-shuttles of aid have left Cyprus since the operation started, with enough already distributed in Gaza to “provide food to tens of thousands of non-combatants for a month,” Letymbiotis said.
“The aim of offering humanitarian aid to 500,000 people a month is possible.”
Aid for Gaza still leaving Cyprus by sea while landing pier fixed
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Aid for Gaza still leaving Cyprus by sea while landing pier fixed
- Offloading aid had slowed down, but the sea corridor had not ceased operating
Military drone attack on Sudan oil field kills dozens and threatens South Sudan’s economic lifeline
- RSF said the oil field in Heglig was attacked a day after they seized the facility near the border with South Sudan
- South Sudanese soldiers were among the dead in the attack by an Akinci drone
JUBA: Dozens of people were killed Tuesday evening in a drone strike near Sudan’s largest oil processing facility carried out by the Sudanese Armed Forces, according to the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces.
The RSF, which has been fighting Sudan’s military since 2023, said the oil field in Heglig was attacked a day after the RSF seized the facility near the border with South Sudan.
Both sides told The Associated Press that the exact number of dead and wounded could not immediately be confirmed. Local news outlets reported seven tribal leaders and “dozens” of RSF troopers were killed.
South Sudanese soldiers were among the dead in the attack by an Akinci drone, according to the RSF, which condemned the attack as a violation of international law.
Two Sudanese military officials confirmed the drone strike, which they said targeted RSF fighters.
The government of South Sudan’s Unity State confirmed three South Sudanese soldiers were killed. A South Sudanese solider, who witnessed the strike and spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak, estimated 25 people were killed.
South Sudanese commander Johnson Olony said in a statement that South Sudanese forces may have been sent to secure Heglig after its capture. South Sudan’s military spokesperson declined to comment.
South Sudan relies entirely on Sudanese pipelines to export its oil and has seen production repeatedly disrupted by the conflict, worsening its economic crisis.
Sudanese soldiers and oil workers began evacuating Heglig on Monday and the RSF took control of the facility without resistance. By Tuesday, about 3,900 Sudanese soldiers had surrendered their weapons to South Sudanese forces after crossing into Rubkona County, according to Unity State’s information ministry.
Video from South Sudan’s state broadcaster showed tanks, armored personnel carriers and artillery among the weapons handed over.
Thousands of civilians from Sudan began crossing the border into South Sudan on Sunday and were still arriving Wednesday, the South Sudan government said, adding that the exact number was not yet known. South Sudan insists it remains neutral in the conflict despite accusations of siding with the RSF.
Heglig’s capture is the latest in a string of RSF territorial gains, including the October fall of el-Fasher, the capital of North Darfur and the Sudanese army’s last stronghold in Darfur. The war, which began in April 2023, has killed an estimated 150,000 people, displaced millions and triggered multiple famines. Both sides face allegations of atrocities.
The capture of Heglig, a vital state asset, could be a significant bargaining chip for the RSF, analysts said. But the opaque nature of oil finances makes it difficult to determine how much the SAF, RSF or South Sudan will be impacted economically over the short term.
