EU, US to open sea corridor for Gaza in days as peace talks fail

The European Union and partners including the U.S. are set to launch a maritime aid corridor to Gaza as soon as this weekend — a means to get urgent aid to civilians caught in the Israel-Hamas war.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen visited Cyprus to announce the initiative on Friday. The plan would see ships carry food and medical supplies from the Cypriot town of Larnaca across the Mediterranean Sea to Gaza, where the U.S. plans to set up a temporary port to receive shipments.

The efforts — including security checks — will be co-ordinated with Israel, which controls all but one of Gaza’s land borders as well as its territorial waters and airspace, according to a statement. The EU and the U.S. will also work with the United Kingdom and United Arab Emirates.

The move is seen as a way to top up the limited volumes of aid entering Gaza via the land border with Egypt after five months of war, which have seen Israel bombard the enclave in pursuit of Hamas terrorists and infrastructure. The U.S. last week started airdrops of food.

“We are here because Palestinians, and in particular those in Gaza, need all our help,” von der Leyen said in a statement. “We are facing a humanitarian catastrophe.”

Von der Leyen said the EU would continue exploring different ways of getting aid to Gaza.

Belgium, which holds the EU’s rotating presidency, conducted the first flight this week in an airdrop operation coordinated by Jordan aimed at delivering aid to Gaza.

EU leaders will address the Middle East crisis when they hold a summit in Brussels later this month, but it’s unclear whether they will be able to agree on a joint statement calling for a humanitarian pause or a cease-fire.

President Joe Biden said Thursday that he has ordered the military to create a temporary port on the Gaza coast, and used his State of the Union address to call on Israel to let in more aid. However, U.S. officials said it could take weeks to build the facility.

The focus on delivering assistance comes as attempts to secure a cease-fire between Israel and Hamas — temporary or otherwise — have failed with the Muslim holy month of Ramadan fast approaching.

Negotiations involving Israel, the U.S., Egypt and Qatar have led to a proposed six-week halt to fighting and the release of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners in return for dozens of Israeli hostages, though Hamas is demanding a full withdrawal of Israel forces from Gaza.

Israel says it won’t stop its campaign until the Iran-backed terrorist group is destroyed.

Hamas triggered the war with its Oct. 7 terrorist invasion of Israel, killing 1,200 people and abducting 250 more, and Israel’s retaliatory campaign as left more than 30,000 dead, according to the Hamas-run Health Ministry in Gaza.