Growing controversy over Biden's Gaza pier fuels concerns over cost, security

The rising costs of a floating pier off the coast of the embattled Gaza Strip – said to be aimed at enabling shipments of humanitarian aid to reach the civilian population trapped in the central and northern parts of the Palestinian enclave – has stoked controversy after it was revealed this week that the project will cost the U.S. upward of $320 million. 

On Tuesday, the U.S. Central Command posted photographs on X of the pier under construction by U.S. soldiers in the Mediterranean Sea, saying that the hulking metal platform "will support USAID and other humanitarian partners who will receive and deliver humanitarian aid to the people of Gaza." 

However, some have questioned the effectiveness of the Joint Logistics Over-the-Shore (JLOTS) pier after the Pentagon revealed on Monday that the estimated cost would nearly double the original estimate of $180 million. It also said the project will only be in use temporarily, for a period of three months.