Israeli officials reacted with outrage on Monday in the
face of a claim by the EU’s foreign policy chief that Jerusalem is imposing a
famine on Palestinian civilians in Gaza as the war in the beleaguered territory
continues to rage.
The accusation comes from Josep Borrell — a Spanish
official who serves as the EU’s High Representative for Foreign Affairs and
Security Policy “In Gaza we are in a state of famine, affecting thousands of
people,” — said at the opening of a conference in Brussels on humanitarian aid
for Gaza. “This is unacceptable. Starvation is used as a weapon of war. Israel
is provoking famine,” Borrell continued.
Israel’s Foreign Minister Israel Katz responded
: “Despite Hamas violently disrupting aid convoys and UNRWA’s
collaboration with them, we persist.” “Israel allows extensive humanitarian aid
into Gaza by land, air, and sea for anyone willing to
help,” In a blunt posting on the same platform,
Israeli government spokesperson Eylon Levy noted that on Sunday, “8 million
lbs. of food entered Gaza by land. That’s ~4LBS.
OF FOOD PER CAPITA. That’s not famine,
starvation, or catastrophic food insecurity.”
Levy added tartly: “I’m sorry if the facts are
awkward for your efforts to help Hamas rapists survive 10/7 and live to
fight another day.”
Separately, in a statement on Friday, COGAT — the
Israeli agency that assists with humanitarian aid to Palestinians in the West
Bank and Gaza — noted that since the beginning of March, “an average of 126
food trucks entered Gaza daily. This is 80 percent more food trucks entering
compared to before Oct. 7. 500 trucks entered Gaza daily before Oct. 7,
carrying building, agriculture, and industrial supplies; only an average of 70
carried food.”
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