Famine has reached Gaza. Nearly two years into this humanitarian crisis, a crisis that has gotten

significantly worse in the past few months. There has been one recurring problem above all others,

a failure to deliver the necessary humanitarian aid to the Palestinians. The Biden administration

tried to address the problem by building a military pier.

The president announced the effort in his 2024 state of the union address.

Tonight, I'm directing the U.S. military to lead an emergency mission to establish a temporary

pier in the Mediterranean on the coast of Gaza that can receive large shipments carrying food, water, medicine, and temporary

shelters. That pier only operated for a few weeks, delivering a fraction of the aid needed.

It cost some $230 million and led to one U.S. soldier's death.

Critics said by the end of that mission, it achieved next to nothing.

The U.S., along with other countries, also tried airdrops using cargo planes to drop crates with parachutes.

Palestinians have drowned trying to reach aid that landed in the sea, and several have been

killed when the parachute on pallets failed to open and crush them below. The most

efficient and effective way to get aid into Gaza is by truck over land, but that has also been a

complicated negotiation. Nearly two years after October 7th, after countless pleas from world leaders,

humanitarian groups, none of the efforts to get

meaningful aid in to Gaza have worked. But it wasn't just the logistics that have prevented

food from reaching Gaza. It's been Israel's unwillingness to let aid in. David Satterfield,

special envoy for Middle East humanitarian efforts under the Biden administration, recalled early

negotiations with Israel while speaking to NPR.

It was up against a brick wall. The prime minister in one remark I remember said, if I were to

allow, even for trucks in, there would be IDF tanks in Jerusalem pointed at my office.

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