Samantha Power, USAID’s top official, said on Friday the pier is part of a joint aid operation led by the United States, Arab nations, the U.N., and international donors. Power, during an April 10 briefing before Congress, said, "UNRWA infrastructure is still being relied upon, including by USAID's partners" to deliver aid into the Gaza Strip. UNRWA, Power said at the time, is "at the heart of the response" to the humanitarian situation, and is being used by the U.S. government even after Congress froze American funding to the organization as a result of its ties to Hamas and participation by some of its employees in the terror group’s Oct. 7 attack on Israel.

As the pier becomes active and aid begins to be distributed, Biden administration officials from USAID, the State Department, and the Defense Department will not disclose the extent of UNRWA’s involvement in their effort to pump humanitarian goods into the Hamas-controlled territory. America’s ties to UNRWA are driving opposition on Capitol Hill, with Sen. Ted Cruz (R., Texas), telling the Washington Free Beacon that the Biden administration is trying to circumvent congressional prohibitions on U.S. support for the aid group.