Trump sees ‘real starvation’ in Gaza, despite Israeli claims, and vows to step up aid

President Trump and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer discussed doing more to feed the starving population in the Gaza Strip on Monday, as an international outcry mounted over the rising number of people dying of hunger in the besieged Palestinian enclave.

Trump’s comments during a visit to Scotland were at odds with his close ally, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who on Sunday claimed that “there is no starvation in Gaza.”

The United Nations’ World Food Programme says a third of Gaza’s population of about 2 million go for days without eating, as hundreds of thousands of people there live in “famine-like conditions.” The World Health Organization said on Sunday there had been a “marked spike” in malnutrition-related deaths in Gaza: 63 in July, including 25 children.

Asked by reporters whether he agreed with Netanyahu’s assessment about a lack of starvation, Trump said: “I don’t know. I mean, based on television, I would say not particularly, because those children look very hungry. But we’re giving a lot of money and a lot of food, and other nations are now stepping up.”

Trump later said, “Some of those kids are — that’s real starvation stuff. I see it, and you can’t fake that. So we’re going to be even more involved.”

Starmer said the “situation on the ground in Gaza is absolutely intolerable.” He said for the British public, “those images of starving children in particular are revolting.”

The humanitarian crisis has deepened after nearly 22 months of war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza, which began with a deadly Hamas-led attack in Israel on Oct. 7, 2023.

After growing international criticism over Israel’s restrictions on the flow of humanitarian aid in Gaza, the Israeli military said Sunday it would begin to pause fighting for 10 hours a day in Gaza’s population centers to allow more food aid, including airdrops, into the enclave.

Trump said “it’s very difficult to deal with Hamas,” the militant and political organization that runs Gaza. Hamas and other fighters in Gaza are believed to hold 22 living hostages and the bodies of 28 deceased hostages taken in its Oct. 7 attack on Israel.

But Trump also said “Israel has a lot of responsibility” for the limited food aid in Gaza, and said he wanted Netanyahu to “make sure they get the food.”

He said the U.S. with the help of European countries would set up “food centers” with no barriers or fences, so people could go and get what they need. He did not elaborate on the plan.

NPR’s Franco Ordoñez contributed reporting from Turnberry, Scotland, and Lauren Frayer contributed from Aberdeen.