A US Defense Department spokesman says that it appeared that none of the 569 tons of humanitarian assistance that has arrived at a US-built pier in the Gaza Strip has been formally distributed.

While some of the aid coming off the pier has made it to warehouses, trucks have been intercepted by crowds of desperate Palestinians after the aid leaves the loading area.

• “I don’t believe so,” Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder says in response to a question about whether any of the aid had been delivered yet.

• “We fully appreciate and recognize that land routes are the optimal way to get aid,” Ryder says.

• “It’s also important to remember that this is a combat zone and that it is a complex operation.”

Source: TOI