Efforts to secure a ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war before the expected start of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan on Sunday appear to be failing, frustrating the delivery of urgent aid into Gaza and increasing the risk of a wider conflict.

A major transport union urged a full halt of merchant ships sailing through the Red Sea, adding to calls for vessels to reconsider the voyages after a Houthi militant attack killed three sailors. 

Biden to direct military to build Gaza port to deliver aid

President Joe Biden is directing the US military to establish a temporary port on the Gaza coast to ramp up the delivery of aid and ease the humanitarian crisis in the territory sparked by the Israel-Hamas war, according to senior administration officials. 

Biden was to announce the steps in his State of the Union address on Thursday night, the officials said, speaking on condition of anonymity to detail the plans.

The ships will carry food, water, medicine and other supplies, according to the officials, who said the temporary pier will provide capacity equivalent to hundreds of truckloads of additional assistance each day. US officials plan for control of the port to transition to a commercially operated facility over time.

Biden’s bid is only the latest effort by the US to address the dire conditions for the two million Gazans following Israel’s military campaign to root out Hamas, which has killed more than 30,000 to date, according to Hamas-run health authorities.

The initiative will get under way as soon as Biden issues the order, the administration officials said. Building a temporary port has been described as a daunting undertaking. Officials cautioned on Thursday that it would take weeks to build the facility and deliver the aid. They said the project would involve US military personnel on vessels offshore, but wouldn’t require US forces to go onshore.

Initial shipments would come through Cyprus, aides said, which has the capability to screen shipments. Israel already was expected to approve a new aid effort that could get under way soon, with provisions from the United Arab Emirates being transported to Gaza from Cyprus.

An Israeli official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said their nation welcomed Biden’s decision to deploy a temporary dock, and the project would be carried out with full US-Israeli coordination.  

The move indicates a shift in strategy for the US, which had previously sought to persuade Israel to allow more aid to get to Gaza by land. But Biden has grown frustrated with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as the crisis in Gaza has become more dire, and has focused on workarounds. 

Last week, the US began airdropping aid into the territory. The Defense Department has executed three airdrops into Gaza, including as recently as Thursday. Those provided 192 bundles with more than 112,000 meals, and more airdrops are planned in the coming days. However, aid groups have said airdrops are a limited and inefficient way to provide relief. 

Hopes fade for Gaza ceasefire before Ramadan

Efforts to secure a ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war before the expected start of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan on Sunday appear to be failing, frustrating the delivery of urgent aid into Gaza and increasing the risk of a wider conflict.

Israeli and US officials say weeks of negotiations involving Egypt and Qatar have led to a proposal for a six-week halt to fighting and the release of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners in return for dozens of Israeli hostages. That may have enabled the delivery of food and medicine to the two million besieged Gazans as the month of prayer and fasting begins.

Hamas rejected the offer, saying it was only interested in a permanent end to the conflict and a full withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza. Israel says it won’t stop its campaign until the Iran-backed militant group is destroyed, with its main leaders killed, captured or exiled. 

The deadlock presents a bleak future for Gazans barely surviving after five months of war, with hundreds of thousands living in tents and on the streets after relentless Israeli bombardments.  

Hamas’ goal was “a comprehensive cessation of aggression against our people”, the group said. Israel “continues to breach the obligations of this agreement regarding achieving a permanent ceasefire, the return of displaced persons, withdrawal from the Strip and meeting the needs of our people”.

A Hamas delegation left Cairo on Thursday to consult with leadership and negotiations would continue, it said. 

The war has been raging since Hamas operatives killed 1,200 people and abducted 250 during their 7 October massacre. 

Ramadan has been seen as a deadline for ceasefire talks because it’s a period of fasting and prayer, and religious and nationalist sentiments often spike at the same time. Talks are likely to continue next week, however, meaning there could still be a deal once the holy month is under way.

Hamas may view Ramadan as less of a deadline and more of an opportunity to show defiance. The group has called on Muslims in Israel and the West Bank — the other main Palestinian territory alongside Gaza — to march on Jerusalem’s Al Aqsa mosque at the start of the holy month. If that doesn’t happen, Hamas may be more open to a deal, Israeli officials say.

Israel controls access to Al Aqsa and its security forces’ treatment of Muslims at one of Islam’s holiest sites has often been a source of tension. There’s been debate within the right-wing Israeli government about restricting access even to the two million Arabs who are Israeli citizens, though Netanyahu accepted the advice of his security chiefs and abandoned that plan. 

That means about 50,000 Israeli Muslim worshipers are due at the mosque next week. As in previous years, only West Bankers above a certain age and cleared by internal security will be permitted to pray there. 

“We will do everything to maintain freedom of worship on the Temple Mount while aptly providing for security and safety needs and enabling the Muslim public to celebrate the holiday,” Netanyahu said.  

The war has seen Israel tighten restrictions on the movement of Palestinians in the West Bank and their right to work in Israel, meaning many are struggling to make ends meet. There have been clashes with Israelis who have set up homes in the territory, known as settlers. Within the past week, two Israelis were killed by gunmen near the settlement of Eli, and Israeli forces swept into a refugee camp near Ramallah, killing a 16-year-old boy.

Israel’s government this week authorised another 3,500 settler homes in the occupied area, the first such announcement in eight months.  

Meanwhile, Israel and international aid organisations were exchanging accusations about why assistance wasn’t arriving properly. Israel said the groups needed more workers; the groups said Israel’s security restrictions were the problem. 

Deadly ship attack means Red Sea voyages need rethink, says union

A major transport union urged a full halt of merchant ships sailing through the Red Sea, adding to calls for vessels to reconsider the voyages after a Houthi militant attack killed three sailors.

“We call on the industry to divert ships around the Cape of Good Hope until safe transit through the Red Sea can be guaranteed,” the International Transport Workers’ Federation (ITF) said. “No delivery window is worth the loss of seafarers’ lives.”

The ITF lobbies for seafarer rights by acting alongside more than 700 affiliate trade unions. It followed a similar appeal by Nautilus International, one of the world’s largest crewing unions earlier Thursday.

Two crew members from the Philippines and another from Vietnam died on Wednesday when the Yemen-based Houthis attacked the bulk commodities vessel True Confidence in the Gulf of Aden. At least two other sailors were injured. 

The incident marks the first deaths of crew members in the militants’ campaign against commercial shipping in one of the world’s busiest waterways and follows the recent sinking of another vessel.

It also raises questions about how much risk shipowners are willing to accept while trying to keep their crews and cargoes safe. Most merchant vessels are already avoiding the region by sailing around the Cape.

“It is time for those shipowners who are continuing to transit through the Red Sea to reassess the necessity of their decision considering recent events,” David Appleton, head of professional and technical at Nautilus, which represents more than 20,000 maritime workers, said in the group’s statement. “The utmost priority should be the safeguarding of the lives of seafarers.” DM

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