Gaza - The US has resumed aid deliveries to Gaza from a temporary pier, the American military said Saturday, after the structure suffered storm damage and underwent repairs in a nearby port.

"Today at approximately 10:30 am (Gaza time) US Central Command (USCENTCOM) began delivery of humanitarian assistance ashore in Gaza. Today, a total of approximately 492 metric tons (~1.1 million pounds) of much needed humanitarian assistance was delivered to the people of Gaza," CENTCOM said on social media platform X.

"No US military personnel went ashore in Gaza," the military command in the Middle East added.

Gaza has been devastated by a brutal Israeli bombardment and invasion now entering its ninth month, uprooting the coastal territory's population and leaving them in dire need of humanitarian assistance.

Daily Horoscope Today's horoscope: Free daily horoscope for Saturday, December 21, 2024

More than two million pounds of humanitarian aid were delivered via the pier last month, but it was damaged by high seas around a week after deliveries began.

The pier was repaired in the Israeli port of Ashdod before being brought back to the Gaza coast and reestablished on Friday.

Israel has been accused of blocking and delaying the entry of aid into Gaza, depriving the territory's 2.4 million people of clean water, food, medicines, and fuel.

Plans for the pier were first announced by President Joe Biden in early March, and US Army troops and vessels soon set out on a trip to the Mediterranean to build the pier.

UN agencies and humanitarian aid groups have warned sea or air deliveries cannot replace far more efficient truck convoys into Gaza, where the United Nations has repeatedly warned of looming famine.

Ukraine conflict Zelensky makes rare disclosure of meeting with CIA director in Ukraine

CENTCOM also said Saturday that the pier – "including its equipment, personnel, and assets" – had no role in Israel's operation earlier in the day to rescue four hostages held in Gaza.

"An area south of the facility was used by the Israelis to safely return the hostages to Israel," CENTCOM said.

"Any such claim to the contrary is false. The temporary pier on the coast of Gaza was put in place for one purpose only, to help move additional, urgently needed lifesaving assistance into Gaza."

The denial came amid reports the pier was used to convey Israeli and American troops into the Nuseirat refugee camp inside an aid truck. The hostage rescue operation reportedly killed 210 Palestinians and wounded hundreds more.