The Taliban government has confirmed that it attacked Pakistani troops in multiple mountainous locations on the northern border.

Construction of the pier is expected to be completed in early May. Once completed, it will initially facilitate the delivery of an estimated 90 truckloads of international aid into Gaza and scale to up to 150 truckloads once fully operational.

The beginning of construction marks a significant milestone following President Joe Biden's call for the military to conduct the emergency operation during his State of the Union Address last month.

Soldiers from the Army's 7th Transportation Brigade at Joint Base Langley-Eustis, Virginia, and sailors from Naval Beach Group 1 at Naval Amphibious Base Coronado, California, were tapped to deploy the Defense Department's Joint Logistics Over-the-Shore capability, or JLOTS.

The first of several watercraft used to construct the pier began the weekslong transit to the U.S. Central Command's area of responsibility less than two days after Biden's address.

Officials underscored today that no U.S. boots will be on the ground in Gaza as part of the operation.

The U.S. has coordinated with the Israeli Defense Force to provide force protection for U.S. personnel operating at sea. The U.S. has also coordinated with an IDF engineering unit to receive the pier on the shore in Gaza once the construction at sea is complete.

The cabinet is releasing an extra 1 billion euros for military aid to Ukraine this year, reports outgoing Prime Minister Rutte. The total support from the Netherlands will thus come to 3 billion this year.

Some cabinet ministers had a telephone conversation with President Zelensky of Ukraine today and informed him of the extra help from the Netherlands. In 2025, the country can also count on military support, of another 3 billion euros. And 400 million euros will be mobilised for the Ukrainian economy and infrastructure. "Ukraine must win this battle. For their and our safety," Rutte said.

Russian shelling caused a large-scale fire at the Trypilska Thermal Power Plant (TPP), with the company still working to localize the fire in the plant’s turbine workshop, energy company Centrenergo said in a statement.

There were no casualties, and the attack has not resulted in power cuts in Ukraine’s capital region Kyiv or other regions supplied by Trypilska TPP.