Trump says there's 'real starvation' in Gaza, contradicting Netanyahu

SBS Australia

5 days ago

US President Donald Trump says many people are starving in the Gaza Strip and has suggested Israel could do more on humanitarian access, as Palestinians struggled to feed their children. As the death toll from two years of Israeli bombardment in the enclave nears 60,000, a growing number of people are dying from starvation and malnutrition, Palestinian health authorities say, with images of starving children shocking the world and fuelling international criticism of Israel over sharply worsening conditions.
Describing the starvation in Gaza, Trump's assessment put him at odds with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who said on Sunday "there is no starvation in Gaza" and vowed to fight on against the Palestinian militant group Hamas — a statement he reposted on X on Monday.
"We're going to be getting some good strong food, we can save a lot of people. I mean, some of those kids — that's real starvation stuff," he told reporters at a news conference with UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer. "We have to help on a humanitarian basis before we do anything. We have to get the kids fed," Trump said.
"We're going to set up food centres, with no fences or boundaries to ease access."
Trump declined to comment on a push by French President Emmanuel Macron to back Palestinian statehood. The United States would work with other countries to provide more humanitarian assistance to the people of the Gaza Strip, including food and sanitation, Trump said.
On Monday, the health ministry in Gaza said at least 14 people had died in the past 24 hours of starvation and malnutrition, bringing the death toll from hunger to 147, including 88 children, most in just the last few weeks.
Israel announced several measures over the weekend, including daily humanitarian pauses to fighting in three areas of the enclave, new safe corridors for aid convoys and airdrops. The decision followed the collapse of ceasefire talks on Friday. Two Israeli defence officials said the international pressure prompted the new Israeli measures, as did the worsening conditions on the ground. United Nations agencies said a long-term and steady supply of aid was needed. The World Food Programme said 60 trucks of aid had been dispatched — short of target. Almost 470,000 people in the Gaza Strip are enduring famine-like conditions, with 90,000 women and children in need of specialist nutrition treatments, it said.
"Our target at the moment, every day is to get 100 trucks into Gaza," WFP regional director for the Middle East, North Africa and Eastern Europe, Samer AbdelJaber, told Reuters.
Muhammad Zakariya Ayyoub al-Matouq, a 1.5-year-old child in Gaza, faces life-threatening malnutrition as the humanitarian situation worsens due to ongoing Israeli attacks and blockade. Source: Getty / Anadolu / Getty Images Netanyahu has denied any policy of starvation. The health ministry in Gaza said that 98 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli fire in the past 24 hours. Qatar said it had sent 49 trucks that arrived in Egypt en route for the strip. Jordan and the United Arab Emirates airdropped supplies.