JAKARTA - US President Donald Trump said many people were starving in Gaza and advised Israel could do more for humanitarian access.
Along with the death toll from the two-year war in Gaza approaching 60,000, more and more people have died from hunger and malnutrition, Gaza's health authorities said.
Calling hunger in Gaza a reality, Trump's assessment made him contradict Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who on Monday said there was "no hunger in Gaza" and vowed to continue fighting against Palestinian militant group Hamas.
Trump, during his visit to Scotland, said Israel had a big responsibility for the flow of aid and many people could be saved.
"Many people are starving," Trump said.
"We will establish food centers," he continued.
Trump emphasized that the food aid center will be built without a fence or boundary to facilitate US access to cooperate with other countries to provide more humanitarian assistance to the Gazan people, including food and sanitation.
On Monday, Gaza's Ministry of Health said 14 people had died in the past 24 hours from hunger and malnutrition, bringing the death toll from hunger from the war to 147, including 88 children, mostly in just recent weeks.
Israel announced several steps over the weekend, including a daily humanitarian break in three Gaza regions, a new safe corridor for aid convoys, and air assistance.
This decision follows the failure of ceasefire negotiations on Friday last week.
UN agencies said a stable and long-term supply of aid was needed.
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The World Food Program (WFP) states 60 aid trucks have been sent less than the target. Nearly 470.000 people in Gaza are experiencing conditions such as hunger, with 90,000 women and children needing special nutritional care.
"Our current target, every day, is to send 100 trucks to Gaza," WFP Regional Director for the Middle East, North Africa and Eastern Europe, Samer Abdel Jaber, told Reuters.
Jan Egeland, head of the Norwegian Refugee Council, told Reuters the situation was very bad.
"Currently, children die every day from hunger, due to disease that can actually be prevented. So, time has run out," he said.
"The disaster has arrived. Children died of hunger, and it was all man-made, everything was done by Israel," he continued.
Netanyahu denies any policies that make Gaza starving.
Netanyahu said aid supplies would remain available both as Israel negotiated a ceasefire and war.
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