US President Donald Trump has labelled Gaza “a mess” and said Israel will have to “make a decision” about its next steps in the strip, hours after the easing of aid restrictions.
Speaking at his golf course in Scotland, the president suggested Hamas had changed its stance on negotiations to release the 50 Israeli hostages the group still held captive, in exchange for a ceasefire in the war-ravaged strip.
“They had a routine discussion the other day and all of a sudden [Hamas] hardened up,” he said.
Donald Trump says the situation in Gaza has deteriorated dramatically. (AP: Evan Vucci)
“They don’t want to give them back and so Israel’s going to have to make a decision.”
Mr Trump said the situation in Gaza had deteriorated dramatically.
More than 100 humanitarian agencies had warned the strip was facing mass starvation, as Israeli restrictions on aid fuelled shortages of food and other supplies.
Israel opens corridors for UN humanitarian aid in Gaza, begins aid drops
Israel denied its actions had caused a starvation crisis, instead blaming Hamas for creating the situation.
Palestinian health authorities said 133 people had died from starvation in the last week, with 87 of them children.
“You know, when I see the children and when I see, especially over the last couple of weeks, and people are stealing the food, they’re stealing the money, they’re stealing the money for the food, they’re stealing weapons, they’re stealing everything,” Mr Trump said.
“It’s a mess. That whole place is a mess.”
He suggested it was a mistake by then Israeli prime minister Ariel Sharon to withdraw from Gaza, although he could not name which Israeli leader had been responsible for the move.
“The Gaza Strip, you know, was given many years ago so that they could have peace — that didn’t work out too well,” he said.
People have had to be treated in the corridor of Al-Shifa hospital. (ABC News)
“When Israel gave that up, whoever was the prime minister at the time, who I know who it was — but it was not exactly a very clever thing to do, because that was given so that they finally have peace.
“And it’s actually made the situation worse.”
Ceasefire and hostage negotiations between Israel and Hamas have collapsed, with the White House’s special envoy for the Middle East Steve Witkoff saying the militant group displayed a “lack of desire to reach” a deal.
“There is no point in continuing negotiations under blockade, extermination and starvation of our children, women and people in the Gaza Strip,” Hamas chief Khalil al-Hayya said on Sunday night.
“The immediate and dignified entry of food and medications to our people is the real and serious expression of the viability of continuing negotiations.”
‘They are all hungry’
Despite the stalemate, Israel has bowed to international pressure over the humanitarian crisis in Gaza.
The Netanyahu government ordered a partial easing of the aid restrictions in the strip, with the changes coming into force on Sunday local time.
The Israeli, Jordanian and United Arab Emirates air forces dropped Pallets of aid across Gaza, while the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said it had established “secure corridors” for the United Nations and other agencies to distribute aid.
There are reports that as many as 11 Palestinians have been injured by pallets falling on their tents.
Even with more supplies entering Gaza, it remains a dangerous situation for Palestinians trying to secure supplies.
The ABC found Alaa Abu Muteer, 47, lying on a thin mattress in the Al-Shifa hospital in a corridor full of injured Palestinians.
Alaaa Abu Muteer says he was shot in the back by an Israeli tank while trying to get food. (ABC News)
“Currently, I am unemployed. I went to bring food for my children. I reached the location and saw there Israeli tanks that began opening fire on the people, and I was shot in my back,” he said.
“I have [10] children. They are all hungry and I am also hungry.
“I am looking for a mouthful of bread. I now need treatment for the wounds that I have.”
The IDF told the ABC it was not aware of any shootings in the area.
Marwari Al-Barari, 39, said she feared the aid situation in Gaza had fuelled a dangerous culture.
“This has taught our children to use knives, things like that,” she said.
“I saw a 10-year-old boy carrying a knife. Where is he going to? He said he is going to the aid distribution.”
Marwari Al-Barari says aid drops are the wrong approach because they have killed people. (ABC News)
She said the airdrops were the wrong approach.
“I fully reject it because I was in the south and it happened in front of my eyes. The people were living next to me and the parachutes came down,” she said.
“There was a boy, 12 years old, that was killed on the spot from a parachute.
“Also, these parachutes cause the barbarism and killing and bullying and stabbing and so forth. I reject it in full.”
Israeli PM denies starvation crisis again
Israel has accused humanitarian organisations of refusing to pick up supplies dropped on the Gaza side of the border fence.
In response, Israel has been accused of making it too difficult and too dangerous to collect the supplies.
“We have hundreds of trucks that are waiting on the Gazan side of the Kerem Shalom crossing,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said.
“We’ve just announced that formally — here are safe corridors.
Alaa Abu Muteer had to be treated in the corridor of Al-Shifa hospital. (ABC News)
“And the UN has no excuses left. No excuses left. Stop lying, stop finding excuses, do what you have to do, and stop accusing Israel deliberately of this egregious falsehood.”
The prime minister again denied there was a starvation crisis in Gaza, despite changing his government’s policy in the strip and the international consensus on the situation.
“Israel is presented as though we are applying a campaign of starvation in Gaza — what a bold-faced lie,” Mr Netanyahu said.
“There is no policy of starvation in Gaza and there is no starvation in Gaza.
Israeli troops board Freedom Flotilla boat
“Hamas rob, steals this humanitarian aid and then accuses Israel of not supplying it.”
Aid agencies have repeatedly denied that there is any evidence of Hamas stealing food and other items.
The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk, urged the international community to continue pressuring Israel to allow more aid in.
“When we think it can’t get worse, it gets worse,” he said.
“Children are starving and dying in front of our eyes.
“Gaza is a dystopian landscape of deadly attacks and total destruction.”