The US military officially announced on Wednesday that its mission to install and operate a temporary, floating pier off the coast of Gaza has come to an end, Reuters reported.
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.
However, the pier has continuously run into problems since it has been installed.
The pier was only operational for a week before a storm broke it apart and put back together.
Two weeks ago, US officials said the pier had been re-attached to the shore after being temporarily removed again days earlier due to poor sea conditions.
The pier was to have been reinstalled last week and be then used for several days before being taken down, but Ryder said the effort to reattach it was unsuccessful.
"The maritime surge mission involving the pier is complete. So there's no more need to use the pier," Navy Vice Admiral Brad Cooper, the deputy commander of US Central Command, told a news briefing on Wednesday.
Cooper said efforts to distribute aid to Gaza arriving by sea would now shift to the established port of Ashdod in Israel. At least five million pounds of aid, which are either in Cyprus or on ships, will be going to Ashdod in the coming days, he said.
"Our assessment is that the temporary pier has achieved its intended effect to surge a very high volume of aid into Gaza and ensure that aid reaches the civilians in Gaza in a quick manner," Cooper said, adding that nearly 20 million pounds of aid was delivered to Gaza.