
Trump envoy Steve Witkoff, Ambassador Mike Huckabee visit aid distribution site in Gaza
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'This morning I joined @SEPeaceMissions Steve Witkoff for a visit to Gaza to learn the truth about @GHFUpdates aid sites,' Huckabee posted on X. 'We received briefings from @IDF and spoke to folks on the ground. GHF delivers more than one million meals a day, an incredible feat!'
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This morning I joined @SEPeaceMissions Steve Witkoff for a visit to Gaza to learn the truth about @GHFUpdates aid sites. We received briefings from @IDF and spoke to folks on the ground. GHF delivers more than one million meals a day, an incredible feat! pic.twitter.com/GyVK5cwNgZ
— Ambassador Mike Huckabee (@USAmbIsrael) August 1, 2025
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In another post, Huckabee wrote, 'Went into Gaza today & observed humanitarian food program by US launched GHF. Hamas hates GHF b/c it gets food to ppl w/o it being looted by Hamas. Over 100 MILLION meals served in 2 months.'
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The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation released a statement on the Gaza visit by the American delegation, which said the visitors observed food aid being distributed to civilians at a GHF secure distribution site.
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'President Trump understands the stakes in Gaza and that feeding civilians, not Hamas, must be the priority,' said GHF spokesperson Chapin Fay. 'Today he sent his envoy to serve as his eyes and ears on the ground, reflecting his deep concern and commitment to doing what's right. We were honoured to brief his delegation, share our operations and demonstrate the impact of delivering 100 million meals to those who need them most.'
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Meanwhile, the IDF announced that troops from the Kfir Infantry Brigade, operating under the 36th Armored Division, are active in southern Khan Yunis in the Gaza Strip.
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CBC
5 hours ago
- CBC
U.S. envoy visits controversial aid site as Gaza starvation crisis worsens
WARNING: Video contains distressing images | U.S. Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff visited Gaza on Friday to inspect a controversial aid distribution site, backed by the U.S. and Israel after meeting with Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday.


Global News
9 hours ago
- Global News
Trump envoy says new Gaza aid plan in works after touring distribution site
U.S. President Donald Trump's Mideast envoy on Friday visited a food distribution site in the Gaza Strip operated by an Israeli-backed American contractor whose efforts to deliver food to the hunger-stricken territory have been marred by violence and controversy. International experts warned this week that a 'worst-case scenario of famine' is playing out in Gaza. Israel's nearly 22-month military offensive against Hamas has shattered security in the territory of some 2 million Palestinians and made it nearly impossible to safely deliver food to starving people. Mideast envoy Steve Witkoff and U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee toured a Gaza Humanitarian Foundation distribution site in Rafah, Gaza's southernmost city, which has been almost completely destroyed and is now a largely depopulated Israeli military zone. Hundreds of people have been killed by Israeli fire while heading to such aid sites since May, according to witnesses, health officials and the United Nations human rights office. Israel and GHF say they have only fired warning shots and that the toll has been exaggerated. Story continues below advertisement In a report issued on Friday, the New York-based Human Rights Watch said GHF was at the heart of a 'flawed, militarized aid distribution system that has turned aid distributions into regular bloodbaths.' 1:59 International outrage at Gaza starvation ramps up pressure on Israel Witkoff says he's working on a new Gaza aid plan Witkoff posted on X that he had spent over five hours inside Gaza in order to gain 'a clear understanding of the humanitarian situation and help craft a plan to deliver food and medical aid to the people of Gaza.' Story continues below advertisement He did not request any meetings with U.N. officials in Gaza during his visit, U.N. deputy spokesman Farhan Haq told reporters. U.N. agencies have provided aid throughout Gaza since the start of the war, when conditions allow. Chapin Fay, a spokesperson for GHF, said the visit reflected Trump's understanding of the stakes and that 'feeding civilians, not Hamas, must be the priority.' The aid group says it has delivered over 100 million meals since it began operations in May. All four of the group's sites established in May are in zones controlled by the Israeli military and have become flashpoints of desperation, with starving people scrambling for scarce aid. 1:55 Trump sent special envoy to Gaza to inspect food distribution: WH More than 1,000 people have been killed by Israeli fire since May while seeking aid in the territory, most near the GHF sites but also near United Nations aid convoys, the U.N. human rights office said last month. Story continues below advertisement The Israeli military says it has only fired warning shots at people who approach its forces, and GHF says its armed contractors have only used pepper spray or fired warning shots to prevent deadly crowding. Dozens killed near aid sites Officials at Nasser Hospital in southern Gaza said Friday they received the bodies of 13 people who were killed while trying to get aid, including near the site that U.S. officials visited. GHF denied anyone was killed at their sites on Friday. Get breaking National news For news impacting Canada and around the world, sign up for breaking news alerts delivered directly to you when they happen. Sign up for breaking National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy The Israeli military said its forces had fired warning shots hundreds of meters (yards) away from the aid site at people it described as suspects and said had ignored orders to distance themselves from its forces. It said it was not aware of any casualties but was still investigating. Another 23 people were killed and dozens wounded near the Israeli-run Zikim Crossing, the main entry point for aid to northern Gaza, according to Dr. Mohamed Abu Selmiya, the director of Shifa Hospital, which received the bodies. He said the vast majority of injuries were from gunfire. Story continues below advertisement 1:49 Gaza hunger crisis: Palestinians face dangerous fight to get food The Israeli military said it struck several armed militants in northern Gaza but that the strike 'was not conducted near the passage of the humanitarian aid trucks and no damage was caused to them.' The Palestinian Red Crescent emergency service said 11 people were killed at another aid distribution point in Gaza City. There was no immediate comment from the military on those deaths. HRW slams Israeli-backed aid system Human Rights Watch said in its report that 'it would be near impossible for Palestinians to follow the instructions issued by GHF, stay safe, and receive aid, particularly in the context of ongoing military operations.' It cited doctors, aid seekers and at least one GHF security contractor. Story continues below advertisement Building on previous accounts, it described how how thousands of Palestinians gather near the sites at night before they open. As they head to the sites on foot, Israeli forces control their movements by opening fire toward them. Once inside the sites, they race for aid in a frenzied fee-for-all, with weaker and more vulnerable people coming away with nothing, HRW said. Responding to the report, Israel's military accused Hamas of sabotaging the aid distribution system, without providing evidence. It said it was working to make the routes under its control safer for those traveling to aid sites. GHF did not immediately respond to questions about the report. The group has never allowed journalists to visit their sites and Israel's military has barred reporters from independently entering Gaza throughout the war. 2:28 'Worst-case scenario of famine' happening in Gaza: UN-backed review Top German diplomat condemns settler violence in the West Bank Germany's foreign minister visited Taybeh in the occupied West Bank, a Palestinian Christian village that has seen recent attacks by Israeli settlers. Johann Wadephul said Israel's settlements are an obstacle to peace and condemned settler violence. He also called on Hamas to lay down its arms in Gaza and release the remaining hostages. Story continues below advertisement Germany has so far declined to join other major Western countries, including Canada, in announcing plans to recognize a Palestinian state. Palestinians in another nearby town laid to rest 45-year-old Khamis Ayad, who they say suffocated while extinguishing fires set by settlers during an attack the night before. Witnesses said Israeli forces fired live rounds and tear gas toward residents after the settlers attacked. Israel's military said police were investigating the incident. They said security forces found Hebrew graffiti and a burnt vehicle at the scene but had not detained any suspects. 3:42 Israelis, Palestinians react as Canada says it intends to officially recognize a Palestinian state There has been a rise in settler attacks, as well as Palestinian militant attacks on Israelis and large-scale Israeli military operations in the occupied West Bank since Hamas' Oct. 7, 2023 attack on Israel out of Gaza that triggered the Israel-Hamas war. Story continues below advertisement Hamas-led militants killed around 1,200 people, mostly civilians, that day and abducted 251 others. They still hold 50 hostages, including around 20 believed to be alive. Most of the others have been released in ceasefires or other deals. Israel's retaliatory offensive has killed more than 60,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza's Health Ministry, which doesn't distinguish between militants and civilians and operates under the Hamas government. The U.N. and other international organizations see it as the most reliable source of data on casualties. Metz reported from Jerusalem and Frankel from Tel Aviv, Israel. Associated Press writer Edith M. Lederer at the United Nations contributed to this report.


CTV News
10 hours ago
- CTV News
Slovenia bans arms trade with Israel over its actions in Gaza
LJUBLJANA, Slovenia — Slovenia has announced that it will ban the import, export and transit of all weapons to and from Israel in response to the country's actions in Gaza. Slovenia, which has often criticized Israel over reported atrocities in Gaza, called the ban, announced late Thursday, 'the first such move by a European Union member state.' Slovenian Prime Minister Robert Golob has said on multiple occasions that Slovenia would act unilaterally in the absence of concerted EU action, the state STA news agency reported. 'The EU is currently incapable of completing this task due to internal discord and disunity,' the government press release said. 'The result thereof is shameful: People in Gaza are dying because they are systematically denied humanitarian aid. They are dying under rubble, without access to drinking water, food and basic health care.' Tiny Slovenia has almost no arms trade with Israel and the decision to ban weapons trade with Israel is mainly a diplomatic message meant to step up pressure as international outrage over Israel's conduct and images of starvation in Gaza. Slovenia's embargo on arms to Israel is a 'symbolic but nevertheless important measure,' said Zain Hussain, arms transfers researcher at the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute. The ban follows other steps by the government of Slovenia. It banned two far-right Israeli ministers from entering the country in July, accusing them of inciting 'extreme violence and serious violations of the human rights of Palestinians' with 'genocidal statements.' 'Slovenia's decision to cut off arms transfers to Israel, which is using imported weapons against civilians in Gaza in a manner that clearly violates international law and basic human decency, is an important breakthrough,' said Daryl Kimball, executive director of the Arms Control Association, which has lobbied the U.S. government to cut Israel's supplies of American war material. In June 2024, Slovenia's parliament passed a decree recognizing Palestinian statehood, following in the steps of Ireland, Norway and Spain. Last year, U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer's government suspended exports of some weapons to Israel because they could be used to break international law. Spain says it halted arms sales to Israel in October 2023. The Netherlands has also cracked down on weapons trade with Israel, and there are court cases in France and Belgium around weapons trade with Israel. But none of the three has announced a blanket ban on all trade and transit similar to what Slovenia announced. Ali Zerdin, The Associated Press