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USA Today
33 minutes ago
- USA Today
US envoy Witkoff visits Gaza aid operation that the UN calls unsafe
Steve Witkoff visited a site run by the U.S.-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation in what he said was an effort to create a new aid plan. CAIRO − President Donald Trump's Middle East envoy became the first high-profile U.S. official to visit Gaza since the war began, touring a U.S.-backed aid operation on Friday that the United Nations says is partly to blame for deadly conditions in the enclave. Steve Witkoff visited a site run by the U.S. and Israel-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation in Rafah in what he said was an effort to create a new aid plan for the war-shattered Palestinian territory, where Israel has been fighting the militant group Hamas. Humanitarian organizations and many foreign governments have been strongly critical of the GHF, which began operations in late May. A global hunger monitor warned this week that famine is unfolding in Gaza. More: 'Every ounce of food': Trump presses Israel on starvation in Gaza; 'children look very hungry' Hours after Witkoff's visit, Palestinian medics reported Israeli forces had shot dead three Palestinians near one of the group's sites in the city on Gaza's southern edge. Reuters could not immediately verify whether it was the same location. The Israeli military said it was still looking into the incident in which soldiers had fired warning shots at what it described as a "gathering of suspects" approaching its troops, hundreds of meters from the aid site. The United Nations says more than 1,000 people have been killed trying to receive aid in Gaza since the GHF began operating there, most of them shot by Israeli forces operating near GHF sites. The Israeli military has acknowledged that its forces have killed some Palestinians seeking aid and says it has given its troops new orders to improve their response. The U.N. has declined to work with the GHF, which it says distributes aid in ways that are inherently dangerous and violate humanitarian neutrality principles, contributing to the hunger crisis across the territory. The GHF says nobody has been killed at its distribution points, and that it is doing a better job of protecting aid deliveries than the U.N. More: Gaza death toll hits 60,000 as global monitor demands action to avert famine Israel blames Hamas and the U.N. for the failure of food to get to desperate Palestinians in Gaza and introduced the GHF distribution system saying it would prevent aid supplies being seized by Hamas. Hamas denies stealing aid. U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee, who traveled with Witkoff to Gaza on Friday, posted on X a picture showing hungry Gazans behind razor wire with a GHF poster with a big American flag that read "100,000,000 meals delivered". "President Trump understands the stakes in Gaza and that feeding civilians, not Hamas, must be the priority," GHF spokesperson Chapin Fay said in a statement, accompanied by images of Witkoff in a grey camouflage top, flak jacket and "Make America Great Again" baseball cap with Trump's name stitched on the back. "We were honored to brief his delegation, share our operations, and demonstrate the impact of delivering 100 million meals to those who need them most," Fay said. Witkoff said on X that he had also met with other agencies. "The purpose of the visit was to give @POTUS (Trump) a clear understanding of the humanitarian situation and help craft a plan to deliver food and medical aid to the people of Gaza," Witkoff said. He visited Gaza a day after meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Israel is under mounting international pressure over the devastation of Gaza since the start of the war in October 2023 and growing starvation among its 2.2 million inhabitants. Starving to death Gaza medics say dozens have died of malnutrition in recent days as hunger sets in, after Israel cut off all supplies to the enclave for nearly three months from March-May. Israel says it is taking steps to let in more aid, including pausing fighting for part of the day in some areas and announcing protected routes for aid convoys. The worsening humanitarian crisis has prompted France, Britain and Canada to announce plans to potentially recognize a Palestinian state, a move already taken by most countries but not by major Western powers. The Israeli military's statistics show that an average of around 140 aid trucks have entered Gaza daily during the course of the war, about a quarter of what international humanitarian agencies say is required. On Friday, the Israeli military said that 200 trucks of aid were distributed by the U.N. and other organizations on Thursday, with hundreds more waiting to be picked up from border crossings inside Gaza. The United Nations says it has thousands of trucks still waiting, if Israel would let them in without the stringent security measures that aid groups say have prevented the entry of much-needed humanitarian assistance throughout the war. Israel has begun allowing food air drops this week, but U.N. agencies say these are a poor alternative to letting in more trucks. On Friday, the Israeli military said that 126 food packages were airdropped by six countries, including for the first time France, Spain, and Germany. "If there is political will to allow airdrops − which are highly costly, insufficient & inefficient, there should be similar political will to open the road crossings," U.N. Palestinian aid agency chief Philippe Lazzarini wrote on X. In addition to the three shot near a GHF site, medics said at least 12 other Palestinians were killed in air strikes across the Gaza Strip on Friday. The Israeli military did not immediately comment. The Gaza war, which began after Hamas killed more than 1,200 people and took 251 hostage in an attack on southern Israel on October 7, 2023, has killed more than 60,000 Palestinians, most of them in Israeli airstrikes. Ceasefire talks in Qatar ended last week in deadlock.
The Hill
an hour ago
- The Hill
Slotkin says she would have voted to block arms sales to Israel
Sen. Elissa Slotkin (D-Mich.) said Thursday that she would have voted to block arms sales to Israel over hunger in Gaza after missing a series of Senate votes Wednesday night to appear on Stephen Colbert's show. The Michigan senator said she was worried about the lack of food and medicine entering Gaza, and that 'images of emaciated children are hard to turn away from.' 'Should similar votes on offensive weapons come up in the future, I will take them on a case-by-case basis, with the hope of important humanitarian course corrections,' she wrote in a lengthy statement on X. 'While the leaders of Hamas deserve what they're getting in response to October 7, and Israel — like any other country in the world — has the right to defend itself, that doesn't include letting children go hungry.' The resolutions, sponsored by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), would have blocked more than $675 million in weapons sales to Israel, and barred another transfer of tens of thousands of assault rifles. They were resoundingly defeated in the Senate, although a record number of Democrats — more than half the caucus — voted in favor. The votes came amidst growing worry in the Democratic caucus over what the United Nations termed 'mounting evidence of famine and widespread starvation' in Gaza, where Israel's war is nearing its two-year mark. President Trump has also expressed concern with the situation, acknowledging earlier this week that there was 'real starvation' in the territory. Slotkin, who is Jewish, served three tours in Iraq as a CIA analyst in the early 2000s. She said in her statement that her experience in the Middle East showed her that aid could be safely distributed in complex war zones. '[E]ven in the most violent years of the war, the U.S. still had the responsibility to facilitate humanitarian supplies into places like Fallujah,' she wrote. 'And militaries that can pull off dangerous and complex operations overseas can also ensure aid is safely distributed in occupied areas.' Slotkin also said that the conduct of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had significantly undermined the country's standing among American lawmakers, writing that he had threatened 'the longstanding bipartisan consensus that have helped keep Israel safe since its inception.' Still, Slotkin appeared to garner criticism from fellow Michigander Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D), the only Palestinian-American in Congress. 'Shame on every senator who voted to continue arming the Israeli apartheid regime or didn't even have the courage to show up and vote,' the representative wrote on X. Michigan is home to one of the largest populations of Arab Americans in the country and was the epicenter of backlash during the 2024 election against the Biden administration's support of Israel.
Yahoo
2 hours ago
- Yahoo
People Are Rolling Their Eyes Into Oblivion After Hearing Karoline Leavitt's Latest Claim About Trump
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt is getting put on blast after she once again demanded that President Donald Trump be given the Nobel Peace Prize. 'President Trump has brokered, on average, about one peace deal or ceasefire per month during his six months in office,' she said as she listed some of those efforts. 'It's well past time that President Trump was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.' While Trump has had his hand in some ceasefire agreements, his efforts overall have been a mixed bag. A ceasefire between Israel and Iran, for example, came only after he launched a US strike on Iranian facilities. And some of the biggest conflicts have continued to rage. Related: Trump vowed repeatedly to end the war between Russia and Ukraine on his first day in office, but the situation has only worsened. He's also promised to end the war in Gaza, but Israel's assault in response to the Oct. 7, 2023, terrorist attacks has continued, and the humanitarian crisis has escalated. Trump has instead complained that he didn't get a 'thank you' from Gaza for sending money intended for food aid. But Leavitt's demand is in line with Trump's longtime grievance over the award. He's complained repeatedly about not getting one during his previous term in office, insisting that he should have had 'four or five' of them by now. And he really doesn't like that President Barack Obama was awarded one. Earlier this month, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he had nominated Trump for the honor in a move many observers believed was just a blatant attempt to curry favor. As a result, Leavitt's critics fired back with a number of facts about her boss. Some also noted that she seemed to pronounce 'Nobel' as 'noble,' which, ironically, is how Trump himself has spelled the name of the prize in the past. Related: And a few compared her over-the-top praise for her boss to North Korean propaganda. @olddog100ua @3mendous @scarylawyerguy @djomegamvp Related: @jimstewartson @mermaid8861 @LucasSa56947288 @rpsagainsttrump @gregtsargent @chetterhub Related: @brettsbaker @ShayneALong @ronxyz00 @johnbrynt This article originally appeared on HuffPost. Also in In the News: Also in In the News: Also in In the News:
