A US service member is in critical condition after sustaining a non-combat injury on Thursday while supporting humanitarian aid to Gaza, a US defense official said on Thursday.
"On May 23, a US service member sustained a non-combat related injury aboard USNS Benavidez (T-AKR 306) while in support of the humanitarian aid mission to Gaza," the official said, according to Fox News. "The service member was transported to a medical facility and is in critical condition at this time. More information will be provided as it becomes available."
Earlier on Thursday, it was reported that two US soldiers had suffered light injuries while working near the temporary US pier off the coast of Gaza.
The soldiers were evacuated through the Ashdod Port to an Israeli hospital.
During an on-record call later in the day, defense officials confirmed to reporters that three US service members were injured while supporting a mission to provide humanitarian aid to the people of Gaza.
While one individual was found to be in critical condition, the other two sustained injuries that were "very minor," according to Vice Admiral Brad Cooper, who described them as "routine injuries."
He added that the two service members who sustained minor injuries had returned to duty.
The US military said last Friday that aid deliveries via the temporary pier in Gaza, aimed at ramping up emergency humanitarian assistance to the Strip, have begun.
The pier was successfully anchored a day earlier, with around 500 tons of aid expected to enter the Gaza Strip in the coming days.
President Joe Biden, in his State of the Union address in March, announced the plans for the temporary pier on the coast of Gaza that would receive large shipments carrying food, water, medicine and temporary shelter and provide aid to the Strip.
A day later, Biden said that Israel will provide security for the port he plans to build off the coast of Gaza that would provide aid to the Strip.