WASHINGTON: Three US troops got non-combat injuries while making a temporary pier off the coast of Gaza to deliver humanitarian aid, with one in critical condition at an Israeli hospital, said US officials on Thursday.
The injuries were the first for US soldiers during the latest operation to deliver humanitarian assistance to Palestinians through the mechanism.
US President Joe Biden announced the pier in March with an estimated cost of $320 million for the first 90 days and involved about 1,000 US troops. The pier started its operations last week.
US Vice Admiral Brad Cooper, the deputy commander of US Central Command, told the media that two of the soldiers had a sprained ankle and a minor back injury.
“Two were very minor, routine injuries. Those individuals returned to duty,” Cooper said.
A third service member, wounded on a ship at sea, was shifted to a hospital in Israel, he said. A US defense official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, told media that the individual was in critical condition.
US lawmakers have expressed concern about the risks of positioning US troops near the coast of Gaza. Biden has said they will not enter the war-torn area.
The Pentagon has said the safety of US military personnel comes first.
Social media images showed a US air defense system, known as CRAM (Counter Rockets, Artillery and Mortars) firing into the sky from the pier. US officials said the troops were testing the air defense system.
Daniel Dieckhaus of the US Agency for International Development said that since the pier started functioning last week, about 506 metric tons of aid had been given to humanitarian groups inside Gaza.
