Israel says it's easing aid blockade as Gaza starvation crisis draws global condemnation
Date: 5 min ago
Title: Israel says it will allow more aid to flow into Gaza as condemnation grows. Here's what to know
Content:
Israel's military has started making controversial airdrops into Gaza, and the military says it will implement 'humanitarian pauses' in parts of the enclave on Sunday, as well as establishing corridors for United Nations convoys to make aid deliveries.
Israel's announcements Saturday came as global outrage over Gazans starving to death in the besieged Palestinian enclave reached boiling point.
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Date: 5 min ago
Title: Ben-Gvir denounces Gaza aid boost, says he was excluded from deliberations
Content:
Israel's far-right national security minister denounced the government's decision to increase humanitarian aid to Gaza, calling it 'a surrender to Hamas' and saying he was excluded from the deliberations.
'On Saturday night, I was informed by a source in the Prime Minister's Office that during Shabbat a security consultation took place without me,' Itamar Ben-Gvir wrote Saturday night on social media.
Shabbat is the Jewish day of rest, which falls on a Saturday. During Shabbat, observant Jews normally refrain from work, outside of emergencies.
'They know very well that, as Minister of National Security, I am available on Shabbat for any important security event and consultation,' Ben-Gvir added.
Israel's military announced Saturday that it would open corridors for humanitarian aid to enter Gaza and pause combat operations in certain areas, amid global outrage over civilians starving to death in the enclave.
Ben-Gvir has been vocal about pressing on with the war in Gaza and has consistently opposed any negotiated ceasefire with Hamas.
He referred to the decision as a 'surrender' which would endanger Israeli soldiers and delay the return of the remaining hostages.
'The only way to win the war and bring back the hostages is to completely stop the 'humanitarian' aid, conquer the entire strip, and encourage voluntary migration,' he said.
Some context: Israel imposed an 11-week blockade on all aid into the strip beginning in March, finally restarting distribution in late May through the controversial US- and Israel-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF).
More than 1,000 Palestinians have been killed trying to access aid in the months since, according to the UN, and aid groups are warning 'mass starvation' is spreading across Gaza.
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CNN
an hour ago
- CNN
‘Worst-case scenario of famine' is unfolding in Gaza, UN-backed food security initiative says
A UN-backed food security agency has warned that 'the worst case scenario of famine' is unfolding in Gaza, its starkest alert yet as starvation spreads and Israel faces growing international pressure to allow more food into the territory. 'Conflict and displacement have intensified, and access to food and other essential items and services has plummeted to unprecedented levels,' the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) said in an alert, adding that 'mounting evidence shows that widespread starvation, malnutrition, and disease are driving a rise in hunger-related deaths.' The IPC said that the alert is intended to 'draw urgent attention to the rapidly deteriorating humanitarian situation' but doesn't constitute a formal classification of famine. 'Given the most recent information and data made available, a new IPC analysis is to be conducted without delay,' it added. More than 20,000 children were admitted for treatment for acute malnutrition between April and mid-July, the IPC said, with more than 3,000 severely malnourished. 'Latest data indicates that famine thresholds have been reached for food consumption in most of the Gaza Strip and for acute malnutrition in Gaza City,' the alert said, calling for 'immediate action' to end the hostilities and allow for 'unimpeded, large-scale, life-saving humanitarian response.' In May, the IPC reported that the enclave's entire population was experiencing 'high levels of acute food security' and the territory was at 'high risk' of famine, the most severe type of hunger crisis. Israel has come under mounting pressure by the international community to break its blockade, allow aid into Gaza and end the war. In some of his strongest remarks on the crisis, US President Donald Trump on Monday said there is 'real starvation' in Gaza, contradicting earlier statements by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who insists there is no starvation. President Donald Trump contradicted Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's assessment on starvation in Gaza and announced a plan for new "food centers" in the enclave. CNN's Nic Robertson reports from Jerusalem. 'That's real starvation stuff,' Trump told reporters in Turnberry, Scotland. 'I see it, and you can't fake that. So, we're going to be even more involved.' Trump added that the United States will set up 'food centers' in Gaza to address the crisis. Vice President JD Vance also lamented images coming out of the besieged territory. 'I don't know if you've all seen these images. You have got some really, really heartbreaking cases. You've got little kids who are clearly starving to death,' Vance told reporters Monday during a visit to Canton, Ohio. 'Israel's got to do more to let that aid in,' he said, adding that 'we've also got to wage war on Hamas so that those folks stop preventing food from coming into this territory.' Over the weekend, Israel announced a daily 'tactical pause in military activity' in three areas of Gaza to enable more aid to reach people. The military said the move would 'refute the false claim of deliberate starvation in the Gaza Strip.' Israel has also allowed foreign countries to airdrop aid into the territory, but the practice has in the past been deemed by the UN and other aid groups as costly, dangerous and insufficient. Meanwhile, the health ministry in Gaza said on Tuesday that more than 60,000 Palestinians have been killed in the territory since Israel's war on Hamas began nearly two years ago. The ministry reported that 113 people were killed in the past 24 hours, bringing the death toll to 60,034. The announcement comes as hopes dim for a ceasefire anytime soon, after talks broke up last week without an agreement. The war began after Hamas' October 7, 2023 attack on Israel killed around 1,200 people and saw another roughly 250 people taken hostage. Authorities in Gaza do not distinguish between civilians and Hamas fighters when reporting casualty figures, but the health ministry and the UN say the majority of deaths are women and children. And the true toll could be much higher, with many thousands still believed to be buried under rubble. Israel does not dispute that a significant number of Palestinian civilians have been killed in its war in Gaza. But it has long argued that figures from the Hamas-controlled health ministry are exaggerated, and that Hamas embeds itself between civilians, using them as 'human shields.' On Monday, a pair of leading Israeli human rights groups accused Israel of 'committing genocide against Palestinians in Gaza,' becoming the first such organizations to make the claim. B'Tselem said it came to that 'unequivocal conclusion' after an 'examination of Israel's policy in the Gaza Strip and its horrific outcomes, together with statements by senior Israeli politicians and military commanders about the goals of the attack.' A second Israeli group, Physicians for Human Rights Israel (PHRI), announced it was joining B'Tselem in calling Israel's actions in Gaza genocide. It published a separate legal and medical analysis documenting what it called 'deliberate and systematic extermination of the health system in Gaza.' Israeli government spokesman David Mencer dismissed the report. 'We have free speech in this country but we strongly reject this claim,' he told reporters, adding that Israel has allowed aid into Gaza. CNN's Eyad Kourdi, DJ Judd and Ivana Kottasová contributed reporting.
The Hill
an hour ago
- The Hill
Pressure on Trump grows as Greene joins MAGA voices criticizing Israel on Gaza
Members of President Trump's MAGA base are speaking out about the unfolding humanitarian crisis in Gaza, adding to pressure on the administration to intervene and underscoring a looming divide among Trump supporters over how to approach the situation. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.), Rep. Lance Gooden (R-Texas) and podcast host Theo Von are among those who have expressed alarm in recent days about the situation in Gaza, where Trump acknowledged this week ' real starvation ' was happening on the ground. The increasing unease among some of Trump's staunchest supporters puts a spotlight on the administration's close ties with Israel and raises additional questions about what exactly Trump will do to get aid into Gaza. 'A way has to be found to get aid to Gaza and to discredit efforts by Hamas to blame the humanitarian situation on the U.S. and Israel,' one source close to the White House told The Hill. 'Trump is committed to ending this conflict, but I don't know what his next steps will be.' Trump said Monday he did 'not particularly' agree with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's claim that there was no starvation happening in Gaza, which has been devastated by Israel's war against Hamas. The president also said the U.S. would take a more active role in getting food into the region. 'I think everybody unless they're cold-hearted or worse than that, nuts, there's nothing you can say other than it's terrible,' Trump said Tuesday of the images of children going hungry. But Trump also indicated Tuesday that Israel would take a leading role in helping to get more food into Gaza. Critics have argued Israel, which in March imposed an embargo on aid going into Gaza, is partly responsible for the deteriorating conditions in Gaza. 'They don't want Hamas stealing the money and stealing the food. I think Israel wants to do it. And they'll be good at doing it,' Trump said, adding that he spoke to Netanyahu 'two days ago.' The Integrated Food Security Phase Classification, a United Nations-affiliated group, said in a report Tuesday that the ' worst-case scenario of famine is currently playing out in the Gaza Strip.' Trump's own messaging around Gaza — that there is a genuine humanitarian crisis on the ground but that Israel deserves deference to operate — is reflective of the differing views among his own supporters. Podcast host Joe Rogan, who has a massive audience and hosted Trump on his show during the 2024 campaign, has been outspoken about the situation in Gaza. Von, another prominent podcast host who has sat down with Trump and Vice President Vance, urged leaders this week to do more to get aid into Gaza. 'Standing with Israel means eliminating every barbaric Hamas terrorist. It also means rejecting the killing and starvation of children in Gaza,' Gooden, a Trump ally, posted on the social platform X. 'We must allow aid to enter Gaza. Ending this hunger crisis will not only spare the lives of children but will strip Hamas of its ability to use innocent children as pawns in their depraved acts of barbarism.' Greene, one of Trump's most high-profile supporters in the House, took to social media this week to condemn the conditions in Gaza. 'It's the most truthful and easiest thing to say that Oct 7th in Israel was horrific and all hostages must be returned, but so is the genocide, humanitarian crisis, and starvation happening in Gaza,' Greene posted on X, becoming the first GOP lawmaker to publicly refer to the situation in Gaza as a 'genocide.' Greene also tangled online with fellow House Rep. Randy Fine (R-Fla.), who dismissed suggestions that people are starving in Gaza. 'There is no starvation. Everything about the 'Palestinian' cause is a lie,' Fine, one of three Jewish Republicans in the House, wrote in a post Sunday. Last week, Fine posted: 'Release the hostages. Until then, starve away.' Greene in a post criticizing Fine said his 'calling for the continued starvation of innocent people and children is disgraceful. His awful statement will actually cause more antisemitism.' It's still unclear, however, if the growing criticism within MAGA of the hunger crisis in Gaza is a sign of a mounting break among Trump's base when it comes to Israel and the Middle East. A Gallup poll published Tuesday found U.S. support for Israel's military action in Gaza had dropped to 32 percent, down 10 percentage points since September. But Republican support for Israel's actions in Gaza had actually ticked up from 66 percent in September to 71 percent in the latest poll. Support for Israel has long been a cornerstone of Republican foreign policy, and many in the party have argued Israel has a right to destroy Hamas after the terrorist group carried out deadly attacks on Oct. 7, 2023. Those attacks killed approximately 1,200 people, while Gazan authorities, which report to Hamas, have estimated casualties in Gaza as amounting to 60,000 people, a figure that includes militants and civilians. Trump has referred to himself as the most pro-Israel president in history, and there are Trump loyalists, such as Fine, who have been adamantly opposed to doing more to address the situation. Then there is Laura Loomer, who has previously described herself as a 'proud Islamophobe' but has had audiences in recent months with both Trump and Vance. Loomer has criticized the mechanism used to send aid to Gaza and dismissed reports of starvation as 'fake.' 'Members of the US Congress should not be pushing Palestinian Propaganda,' Loomer posted on X.
The Hill
an hour ago
- The Hill
Lawmakers see Gaza crisis as serious test for Trump's Middle East policy
The worsening humanitarian crisis in Gaza is seriously testing President Trump's Middle East policy as well as Congress's traditional support for Israel and its armed forces as Republicans and Democrats on Capitol Hill grow increasingly critical of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Senate Republicans are warning that Netanyahu's disregard of reported failures to deliver food aid to civilians in Gaza, including thousands of children, risks becoming a political problem for Trump. GOP lawmakers say that Trump sent a message to Netanyahu on Monday when he pointedly disagreed with the Israeli prime minister's claim that there's 'no starvation' in Gaza, despite many images of emaciated civilian adults and children. Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) said the crisis in Gaza 'could be' a political problem for Trump. 'I think that the American people at the end of the day are a kind people. They don't like seeing suffering, nor do I think the president does,' he said. 'If you see starvation, you try to fix it.' Tillis said Trump won't step away from his commitment to Israel but observed the president appears to be holding Israeli officials 'accountable.' 'He's right to hold elected [officials] accountable and I would encourage Mr. Netanyahu to just be sensitive to that,' he said, while also pointing out that Netanyahu is in a difficult position because he's dealing with Hamas terrorists who are using starving civilians as human shields. And Tillis argued the pain and suffering in Gaza is 'a direct result of the action of their elected leadership in Hamas,' referring to the Oct. 7, 2023, attacks on Israeli settlements. Trump on Monday said that 'based on television' the children of Gaza 'look very hungry' and said there appears to be 'real starvation.' Images of emaciated children, especially, have shocked lawmakers in both parties in recent weeks as the effects of Israel's four-month siege on the war-torn enclave are becoming more pronounced. Senate Appropriations Committee Chair Susan Collins (R-Maine) said she is 'very concerned' about 'the innocent people in Gaza who are at risk of hunger or even starvation.' She added, 'Israel is trying to resume assistance' to Palestinian civilians, and, like Tillis, she called Hamas a 'terrorist organization' that 'started this war.' 'The best way to end it is for Hamas to agree to a ceasefire and release all of the hostages remaining,' she said. The United Nations has estimated that nearly 1 in 3 people in Gaza are going without food for days at a time, and hospitals in the area are reporting deaths from starvation. At least 24 children younger than 5 have died from hunger-related causes in July, according to the World Health Organization. Some of the loudest criticism on Capitol Hill is coming from Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.), one of Trump's staunchest MAGA-aligned allies, who warned in a social media post Monday evening that 'genocide, humanitarian crisis, and starvation' is 'happening in Gaza.' One Republican senator requested anonymity to comment candidly on Netanyahu's handling of the conflict in Gaza and the failure to deliver humanitarian assistance to civilians. 'There is a real problem in Gaza that needs to be addressed, and world opinion has moved in that direction,' said the GOP lawmaker. The senator said Trump's public break with Netanyahu on whether there is indeed starvation represented a 'shift' in the administration's position. 'Now it's accentuated, that concern,' the lawmaker said. 'The world is changing in that regard.' A Gallup poll conducted from July 7 to July 21 found that only 32 percent of surveyed Americans approve of Israel's military action in Gaza, a drop of 10 percentage points compared with September. It was the lowest reading since Gallup first started asking about the issue in November 2023. GOP lawmakers say that the crisis in Gaza is likely to complicate Trump's efforts to build stronger economic and security ties with predominantly Muslim Gulf states such as Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates. Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.), when asked Tuesday about Greene's 'genocide' claim and Netanyahu's slipping support among Americans, said he shared Trump's view on starvation happening in Gaza. 'I share the president's view. The humanitarian thing, obviously, when you see people hurting like that, is to want to help meet that need and alleviate that pain,' he told reporters. 'I think our government and I think other governments around the world, other nations, are very interested in doing what they can to [help] people who through no fault of their own are being harmed.' But Thune also accused Hamas of intercepting and diverting a lot of the food aid going to Gaza. Senate Democrats, meanwhile, are ramping up pressure on Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Trump's special envoy to the Middle East, Steve Witkoff, to advocate for a large-scale expansion of humanitarian assistance to Gaza, calling the 'humanitarian crisis in Gaza' both 'acute' and 'unsustainable.' A group of 40 Senate Democrats wrote a letter to Rubio and Witkoff on Tuesday, warning that 'hunger and malnutrition' in Gaza are 'widespread' and 'deaths due to starvation, especially among children are increasing.' Notably, the letter was led by several prominent Jewish Democrats, including Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (N.Y.) and Sens. Adam Schiff (Calif.), Jacky Rosen (Nev.) and Brian Schatz (Hawaii), the Democrats' chief deputy whip. The lawmakers took aim at the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, the American nonprofit organization established with the approval of the Israeli government in February to deliver food aid. They argued that the group has 'failed to address the deepening humanitarian crisis' and has 'contributed to an unacceptable and mounting civilian death toll around the organization's sites.' The U.N. human rights office said last week that Israeli forces have killed more than 1,000 Palestinians trying to get food at these sites. Rosen said Democrats want Hamas to release the remaining hostages, but she declared, 'We have to be sure we address the suffering in Gaza.' 'We need to get that humanitarian aid in, relieve the suffering, and we have to find that path forward for the day after,' she said. Sen. Angus King (Maine), an independent who caucuses with Democrats, declared on Monday that he would oppose 'any' support for Israel while the hunger crisis lasts in Gaza. 'I am through supporting the actions of the current Israeli government and will advocate — and vote — for an end to any United States support whatsoever until there is a demonstrable change in the Israeli policy,' he said in a statement posted on his website. King said he received a 'positive' reaction from people in Maine and even 'friends in the Jewish community.' He said he hopes other senators will follow his example. 'Even the president noted the problem yesterday,' he said of Trump's statement about starvation in Gaza. King warned that Israel's harsh tactics in Gaza are 'disastrous' for its support among global leaders and its standing among Americans who have been bombarded with disturbing images from Gaza. 'They're losing the support of a whole generation of Americans. These young people who are protesting 10 or 15 years from now are going to be in Congress. It's a self-inflicted wound, it's unnecessary,' he said. King said he thinks this sentiment is shared by colleagues on both sides of the aisle. 'I think everybody is concerned about this,' he said. 'The president made a pretty straightforward statement.' Rep. Ritchie Torres (D-N.Y.), an outspoken supporter of Israel, warned in an interview with journalist Chuck Todd on Sunday that Netanyahu had done 'irreparable damage' to Israel's relationship with Democrats. Asked whether Netanyahu's policies are endangering the relationship between the United States and Israel, Rosen, a leading Democratic voice on Israel-related issues, replied: 'That will be up to history to judge.'
