US military ship heading to Gaza to build port

The support ship, General Frank S Besson, set sail from a military base in the state of Virginia on Saturday. President Joe Biden said the US would build the floating harbour to help get aid into Gaza by sea. The UN has warned that famine in the Gaza Strip is almost inevitable and children are starving to death. Pentagon has said it could take up to 60 days to build the pier with the help of 1,000 troops - none of whom would go ashore.

Charities have said those suffering in Gaza cannot wait that long. An aid ship laden with 200 tonnes of food is expected to set sail from a port in Larnaca, Cyprus on Sunday afternoon. Gaza has no functioning port and its surrounding waters are too shallow for large vessels. A team from the World Central Kitchen has been building a pier to receive the aid.

Israel has welcomed the ocean initiative, and said aid would be delivered after security checks were carried out in Cyprus. An estimated 300,000 Palestinians have been cut off from food and water. Israel has been accused of using the situation as a pretext to attack the Palestinians. The Israeli military says it is only trying to protect its own citizens.

The Palestinians say they are being forced to live in fear of the Israeli military.

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