The UN starts to move tons of aid from US-built pier after security fears suspended work there

JERUSALEM (AP) — Humanitarian workers have started moving tons of aid that piled up at a U.S.-built pier off the Gaza coast to warehouses in the besieged Palestinian territory, the United Nations said Saturday, an important step as Washington considers whether to resume pier operations after yet another pause because of heavy seas.

It wasn't known when the aid might reach Palestinians in Gaza, where experts have warned of the high risk of famine as the Israel-Hamas war is in its ninth month. This is the first time trucks have moved aid from the pier since the World Food Program, a U.N. agency, suspended operations there because of security concerns on June 9.

In just the last week, more than 10 million pounds were moved ashore, according to the U.S. military.

WFP spokesperson Abeer Etefa told The Associated Press this is a one-time operation until the beach is cleared of the aid and is being done to avoid spoilage. Further U.N. operations at the pier depend on security assessments, Etefa said. The U.N. is investigating whether the pier was used in an Israeli military operation last month to rescue three hostages in a raid that killed more than 270 Palestinians.

If WFP trucks successfully bring the aid to warehouses inside Gaza, that could affect the U.S. military’s decision on whether to reinstall the pier, which was removed because of adverse weather on Friday. U.S. officials said they were considering not reinstalling it because of the possibility that the aid would not be picked up.

Lawlessness around humanitarian convoys is another challenge to aid distribution. The convoys have come under attack in Gaza. While most aid deliveries come by land, restrictions around border crossings and on what items can enter Gaza have further hurt a population that was already dependent on humanitarian aid before the war.

Meanwhile Saturday, a senior Biden administration official said the U.S. has presented new language to intermediaries Egypt and Qatar aimed at trying to jump-start stalled Israel-Hamas negotiations.

The official, who requested anonymity to discuss the effort that the White House has yet to publicly unveil, said the revised text focuses on negotiations that are to start between Israel and Hamas during the first phase of a three-phase deal that U.S. President Joe Biden laid out nearly a month ago.

The first phase calls for a “full and complete cease-fire,” a withdrawal of Israeli forces from all densely populated areas of Gaza and the release of a number of hostages, including women, older people and the wounded, in exchange for the release of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners.

The proposal called for the parties to negotiate the terms of the second phase during the 42 days of phase one. Under the current proposal, Hamas could release all of the remaining men, both civilians and soldiers. In return, Israel could free an agreed-upon number of Palestinian prisoners and detainees. The releases won’t occur until “sustainable calm” takes effect and all Israeli troops withdraw from Gaza.

The new proposed language, which the official didn't detail, aims to find a workaround of differences between Israel and Hamas about the parameters of the negotiations between phase one and phase two. Hamas wants negotiations centered on the number and identity of Palestinian prisoners to be released from Israeli jails in exchange for remaining living Israeli soldiers and male hostages held in Gaza, the official said. Israel wants negotiations to be broader and include the demilitarization of the territory controlled by Hamas.

Hamas political official Osama Hamdan said the group had yet to receive a new cease-fire proposal from mediators. Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh spoke by phone with the head of Egypt’s general intelligence service to discuss the negotiations, Hamas said in a statement.

More than 37,800 Palestinians have been killed in the war since it began with Hamas’ attack on southern Israel on Oct. 7, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, which doesn’t distinguish between civilians and combatants in its toll. The ministry said the bodies of 40 people killed by Israeli strikes had been brought to local hospitals over the past 24 hours.

At least three people, including a 5-year-old girl, were killed and six others were wounded in a strike in the Bureij refugee camp in central Gaza. The Israeli military didn't immediately comment.

The Oct. 7 Hamas attack in Israel killed about 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and another 250 people were taken hostage.

Israeli forces have been battling Palestinian militants in an eastern part of Gaza City, Shijaiyah, over the last week. Israel's military on Saturday noted “close-quarters combat.” Tens of thousands of Palestinians have fled their homes, according to the U.N.

“It’s like the first weeks of the invasion,” one resident, Mahmoud al-Masry said of the intensity of the fighting. “Many people were killed. Many houses were destroyed. They strike anything moving.”

Elsewhere, thousands of Palestinians who remained in Gaza’s southernmost city of Rafah fled Friday for Muwasi, a coastal tent camp designated by the Israeli army as a safe zone. Some told the AP that they evacuated because Israeli gunfire and missiles had come close to where they sheltered.

More than 1.3 million Palestinians have fled Rafah since Israel’s incursion into the city in early May, while aid groups warn there are no safe places to go.

With the heat in Gaza reaching over 32 C (89 F), many displaced people have found tents unbearable. The territory has been without electricity since Israel cut off power as part of the war, and Israel also stopped pumping drinking water to the enclave.

“Death is better than it. It is a grave,” said Barawi Bakroun, who was displaced from Gaza City, as others fanned themselves with pieces of cardboard.

Wafaa Shurafa reported from Deir al-Balah, Gaza Strip. Aamer Madhani in Asheville, North Carolina, Samy Magdy in Cairo, and Abby Sewell in Beirut, contributed to this report.

Follow AP’s Israel-Hamas war coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/israel-hamas-war

People protest against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government and call for the release of hostages held in the Gaza Strip by the Hamas militant group, in Tel Aviv, Israel, Saturday, June 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)

People protest against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government and call for the release of hostages held in the Gaza Strip by the Hamas militant group, in Tel Aviv, Israel, Saturday, June 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)

Israeli soldiers move on the top of a tank near the Israeli-Gaza border, as seen from southern Israel, Saturday, June 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Leo Correa)

Israeli soldiers move on the top of a tank near the Israeli-Gaza border, as seen from southern Israel, Saturday, June 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Leo Correa)

Israeli soldiers move on the top of a tank near the Israeli-Gaza border, as seen from southern Israel, Saturday, June 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Leo Correa)

Israeli soldiers move on the top of a tank near the Israeli-Gaza border, as seen from southern Israel, Saturday, June 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Leo Correa)

An Israeli soldier sits on the top of a tank near the Israeli-Gaza border, as seen from southern Israel, Saturday, June 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Leo Correa)

Smoke rises in the Gaza Strip as seen from southern Israel, Saturday, June 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Leo Correa)

A Palestinian wounded in an Israeli bombardment of Nuseirat refugee camp, is brought to al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Deir al Balah, central Gaza Strip, Saturday, June 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)

Israeli armoured vehicles move near the Israeli-Gaza border, as seen from southern Israel, Saturday, June 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Leo Correa)

People protest against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government and call for the release of hostages held in the Gaza Strip by the Hamas militant group, in Tel Aviv, Israel, Saturday, June 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)

Smoke rises after an explosion in the Gaza Strip as seen from southern Israel, Saturday, June 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Leo Correa)

Medics treat a wounded child from an Israeli bombardment of Nuseirat refugee camp, at al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Deir al Balah, central Gaza Strip, Saturday, June 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)

The sun sets behind the buildings in the Gaza Strip as seen from southern Israel, Saturday, June 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Leo Correa)

MIAMI (AP) — South American soccer's governing body maintained that the Hard Rock Stadium's playing surface will be in great shape for the Copa America final on July 14 amid complaints during the group stage about grass at other fields used for the tournament.

The grass surface at the stadium of the NFL's Dolphins in Miami Gardens was removed Sunday for a July 6 concert featuring the Colombian artist Feid. Installation of a new grass surface will begin on July 8 and is expected to be completed four days before the final of South America's championship.

“We hope it is in excellent condition,” Maristela Kuhn, agricultural engineer of the South American Football Confederation and coordinator of the Copa America 2024 grass project, said Monday. “The same condition as it was for the first match."

There were a pair of first-round games at Hard Rock. Uruguay beat Panama 3-1 on June 23 and Argentina defeated Peru 2-0 on Saturday.

Kuhn spoke to The Associated Press after a news conference in which she and other CONMEBOL officials explained Miami will be the only stadium to undergo changes to its grass. The switch was planned before the start of the tournament because of the concert.

After defending champion Argentina defeated Canada in the June 20 opener at Atlanta's Mercedes-Benz Stadium, both teams criticized the grass field, which replaced the regular artificial turf. Argentina goalkeeper Emiliano Martínez called the field a “disaster." Canada defender Kamal Miller said it seemed hollow.

Following Brazil's 4-1 victory over Paraguay at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas on Friday, Brazil's Vinícius Júnior said the Copa America “is always difficult because of the pitches.”

CONMEBOL officials said those complaints were caused by the grass' visual appearance. In some parts of the field, ends of the grass clumps were visible but there were no differences in level, the officials said. At MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, there were brown patches along the sideline.

“Aesthetics can give the wrong perception,” said Frederico Nantes, director of CONMEBOL competitions and operations. He explained tests were carried out before and after games to evaluate the field and how the ball moved and hit, and he noted they all had good results.

In the second game held in Atlanta, the joints of the grass were no longer visible, and since the look improved, no one spoke about the stadium, Kuhn said.

The Miami stadium maintains a grass surface through the NFL season, but six of 14 stadiums used in the tournament had grass pitches installed over an artificial surface. The fields also are slightly smaller than the international standard, 100 by 64 meters (109 by 70 yards) instead of 105 by 68 meters (115 by 74 yards).

Eight of the stadiums are sites of the 2026 World Cup and renovations have been planned allowing for the the larger fields in two years. For the World Cup, FIFA usually takes control of the stadiums about a month in advance.

CONMEBOL officials said the process of installing the temporary pitches for Copa America started a year ago. Grass grown in specially chosen nurseries are glued to plastic layers that adhere to the surface of the field. It is transported in trucks and placed through a process that takes into account every detail, from watering to sunlight to where the trucks pass that drop it off on the field, the organization said.

Nearly 1 million people will attend Copa America group stage matches. The most-attended game was Argentina's match vs Chile that drew 81,106 at MetLife, site of the 2026 World Cup final. Forty percent of group stage games were sellouts.

AP Copa America coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/copa-america

Argentina's Lionel Messi falls over during a Copa America Group A soccer match against Canada in Atlanta, Thursday, June 20, 2024. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)