Biden to announce in SOTU address plan for a temporary port on Gaza’s coast to increase aid

President Joe Biden will announce during his State of the Union address Thursday that the U.S. military will establish a temporary port on the coast of Gaza to increase the amount of humanitarian aid entering the strip.

"We know the aid flowing into Gaza is nowhere near enough and nowhere near fast enough," a senior administration official told reporters during a call Thursday, according to The Hill.  "The president will make clear again this evening that we all need to do more and the United States is doing more."

Administration officials said that U.S. boots will not be on the ground in Gaza. U.S. personnel will be on offshore military vessels, but they will not install the port onshore.

The supplies are expected to come through Cyprus and be distributed by the United Nations and other officials in the strip. 

The decision, which comes less than a week after the U.S. started aid airdrops into Gaza, is a way that Biden can also demonstrate to his liberal critics that he is working to address the crisis. 

Follow Madeleine Hubbard on X or Instagram.