US acknowledges high levels of starvation in Gaza, says aid needs to increase

By Michael Hernandez

WASHINGTON (AA) - The White House acknowledged Thursday high levels of food insecurity in the besieged Gaza Strip amid Israel's ongoing blockade and said more aid needs to flow into the coastal enclave.

"We recognize that there are real food security issues in Gaza, 100%, and that's why food has really been one of the main staples of the humanitarian assistance that we have been trying to get in -- food, water medicine -- but food certainly right at the top of that list," said National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby.

"We understand that there's a lot of hunger and starvation in Gaza," he added.

Up to 200 trucks have been able to enter Gaza each day, according to the White House. That is a fraction of the roughly 500 shipments that entered daily prior to the start of the war when needs were far less acute.

Kirby acknowledged that there are "dramatically" fewer trucks entering Gaza, saying "more work needs to be done and I can assure you that we're not going to take our eye off that ball."

"We know that there's many people suffering in Gaza, not just from hunger, but other needs, and we're gonna do everything we can to alleviate that," he said.

The rampant food insecurity that has accompanied Israel's ongoing war in Gaza is part of a genocide case at the International Court of Justice brought by South Africa that began earlier Thursday.

During the opening session, lawyers representing Pretoria accused Israel of committing genocidal acts, including the killing of Palestinians, causing them serious bodily and mental harm, mass expulsion from homes and displacement, imposing measures intended to prevent Palestinian births and deprivation of access to adequate food, water, shelter, sanitation, and medical assistance.

Israel has denied the charges and will argue against them at the Hague.

The White House has also rejected the allegations as meritless, a position reiterated by Kirby.

"We have said repeatedly that we believe these allegations, this case is unfounded, and that there's no basis for accusations of genocide against Israel. That's not a word that ought to be thrown around lightly," he said. "We certainly don't believe that it applies here."

At least 23,357 Palestinians have been killed since October, about two-thirds of whom are women and children, and 59,410 injured, according to Palestinian health authorities. Thousands of missing individuals are believed to have died under the rubble of buildings bombed by Israel.

About 85% of Gaza's population has been displaced with the UN warning that famine is likely to occur without a major change to the status quo. Hundreds of thousands of people are living without shelter, or in makeshift camps.

Israel began its war against Gaza in retaliation for a Oct. 7 cross-border attack by the Palestinian group, Hamas, in which an estimated 1,200 people were killed, and more than 200 taken to Gaza as hostages. Roughly half of the hostages remain in captivity.