'No starvation in Gaza': Israel announces 'tactical pause' to fighting amid hunger crisis, slams 'false campaign by Hamas'

The Israeli military on Sunday (July 27) announced “tactical pauses” in fighting for “humanitarian purposes” in parts of Gaza amid rising criticism over the worsening hunger crisis spreading in the Palestinian enclave. The military said it would cease activity in Al-Mawasi, Deir al-Balah and Gaza City from 10 am to 8 pm (0700-1700 GMT) until further notice, areas where it had not renewed ground operations since March, when it resumed its Gaza offensive. Designated secure routes for convoys delivering food and medicine will also be in place permanently from 6 am until 11 pm, the military said. This came hours after Israel began aid airdrops in what it described as an effort to ease the humanitarian conditions in the enclave. Meanwhile, the Egyptian state-affiliated Al Qahera News TV said that aid started moving towards Gaza from Egypt.

Israel Defence Forces (IDF) said, “This decision was coordinated with the UN and international organisations following discussions regarding the matter…The IDF will continue to support humanitarian efforts alongside ongoing manoeuvring and offensive operations against terrorist organisations in Gaza, in order to protect Israeli civilians. The IDF is prepared to expand the scale of this activity as required.” The IDF also shared footage from the airdrop of humanitarian aid in Gaza, stating that “there is no starvation in Gaza” and it is a “false campaign promoted by Hamas.”

Malnutrition in Gaza

International alarm over the humanitarian crisis in Gaza has increased. Aid organisations said last week there was mass hunger among Gaza's 2.2 million people, with food running out after Israel cut off all supplies to the territory in March, before resuming it in May with new restrictions. On Thursday (July 24), the UN said humanitarian pauses in Gaza would allow "the scale up of humanitarian assistance" and said Israel had not been providing enough route alternatives for its convoys, hindering aid access.

Dozens of Gazans have died of malnutrition in the past few weeks, according to the Gaza Health Ministry in the Hamas-run enclave. A total of 127 people have died due to malnutrition, including 85 children, since the start of the war, the ministry said. Israel says there is no starvation in Gaza and that the aid halt was meant to pressure Hamas into giving up dozens of hostages it is still holding in Gaza. After letting in aid in May, Israel said there was enough food in Gaza but that the United Nations was failing to distribute it. The war began on October 7, 2023, when Hamas-led militants stormed southern Israel, killing some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and taking 251 hostages back to Gaza. Since then, Israel's offensive against Hamas has killed nearly 60,000 people in Gaza, and displaced nearly the entire population.

Trump tells Israel to ‘finish the job’ against Hamas

US President Donald Trump on Friday (July 25) said that Israel should escalate its military campaign in Gaza and “clean it up” after Hamas rejected a US-backed ceasefire proposal, suggesting the militant group has no interest in peace. “Hamas really didn’t want to make a deal. I think they want to die. It’s very, very bad. It got to be to a point where you have to finish the job,” Trump wrote on Truth Social before leaving for a trip to Scotland. Trump's announcement came after Steve Witkoff, US' Middle East envoy said that the United States was pulling back from ongoing negotiations to reassess strategy in Washington. “Now we’re down to the final hostages, and they know what happens after you get the final hostages,” Trump said. “Basically because of that, they really didn’t want to make a deal.” Trump signaled that diplomacy may no longer be viable. “They’ll have to fight and clean it up,” he said, backing Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s military campaign. “They (Hamas) will be hunted down.”