US President Donald Trump has proposed that Israel oversee the distribution of aid in Gaza, despite concerns from critics that this move would further entrench the Israeli occupation and endanger the safety of aid seekers. Speaking to reporters on Air Force One, Trump stressed the Israeli talking point that Hamas steals food assistance distributed in Gaza, a claim that has been denied by aid groups and United Nations officials.
Even Israeli officials have anonymously told news outlets like The New York Times that there is no evidence food is being diverted to Hamas. Still, Trump suggested otherwise. “A lot of things have been stolen. They send money. They send food. And Hamas steals it,” Trump told reporters. “So it’s a tricky little game.” He added that he trusted Israel to handle the distribution of US aid, despite chaotic operations that have resulted in Israeli troops firing on hungry Palestinians.
“We’re going to be dealing with Israel. And we think they can do a good job of it,” Trump said. “They want to preside over the food centres to make sure the distribution is proper.” It is not clear where and when the sites would be set up, and whether Israel would run them directly or through the Gaza Humanitarian Fund (GHF), a controversial US-backed aid foundation accused of unsafe practices.
Concerns about aid distribution have been raised by aid groups and UN officials, who have warned that the current system is flawed and puts Palestinians at risk. Anthony Aguilar, a US army veteran who worked with GHF, said that the group has failed to adequately deliver food in Gaza. “What I saw on numerous occasions are the Israeli [military] firing into the crowds of the Palestinians, firing over their head, firing at their feet … not just with rifles or machine guns, but tanks, tank rounds, artillery, mortars, missiles,” Aguilar told Democratic Senator Chris Van Hollen in an interview posted on social media.
Critics say that putting Israeli troops in charge of food distribution sites risks further atrocities against aid seekers. Israel has maintained that there is no actual hunger in Gaza, dismissing the well-documented spread of starvation in the territory as Hamas propaganda. On Monday, Trump acknowledged that there is “real starvation” in the territory, but he stopped short of criticising Israel. Instead, on Tuesday, he stressed that Israel should be the side delivering the aid.
“I think Israel wants to do it, and they’ll be good at doing it,” Trump told reporters. “If they do it — and if they really want to do it, and I think they do — they’ll do a good job. The food will be properly distributed.” He also likened any pressure on Israel to a “reward” for Hamas. “If you do that, you really are rewarding Hamas, and I’m not about to do that,” he told a reporter who asked about the possibility of the US pushing Israel towards a long-term solution to end the conflict.
The situation in Gaza is dire, with hundreds of Palestinians killed by Israeli fire while attempting to reach or leave GHF centres. The siege has sparked an Israeli-imposed hunger crisis in the territory, and dozens of people have died of malnutrition. UN-backed food security experts announced on Tuesday that the “worst-case scenario of famine is currently playing out in Gaza”.