Israel seeks to deflect responsibility for Gaza civilian suffering despite mounting evidence
Despite widespread evidence holding Israel accountable for the starvation and deaths of Palestinian civilians in Gaza, officials have launched a concerted effort to shift blame elsewhere.
Numerous governments, UN agencies, and international figures have documented Israel’s responsibility, yet its leaders have repeatedly denied hunger exists in Gaza, dismissed allegations of culpability, or accused Hamas and aid organizations of aid distribution failures.
These claims persist even after Amichai Eliyahu, Israel’s far-right heritage minister, publicly endorsed policies of starvation, genocide, and ethnic cleansing—rhetoric Israel denies reflects official policy.
As reports of starvation-related deaths, including among children, continue to emerge—along with disturbing accounts of malnutrition—Israel has sought to redirect criticism. The World Health Organization (WHO) has called the crisis “man-made mass starvation,” a view echoed this week by 28 nations, including the UK. Their joint statement condemned Israel’s aid restrictions, describing them as “dangerous, fueling instability and depriving Gazans of human dignity.”
“We oppose the slow and inadequate aid delivery and the tragic deaths of civilians, including children, struggling to access food and water,” the statement read.
While some officials, like Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, have cautiously pledged that starvation will be prevented, others have taken a harder stance. A senior security official recently told journalists, off the record, that “there is no hunger in Gaza,” dismissing images of malnourished children as cases of “underlying diseases.”
Government spokesperson David Mencer remarked: “There is no famine in Gaza—there is a famine of the truth.”
However, Médecins Sans Frontières reported that a quarter of young children and pregnant or breastfeeding mothers screened last week showed signs of malnutrition. Similarly, the UN stated one in five children in Gaza City suffers from acute malnutrition.
Israel’s denial of responsibility is further weakened by its legal obligation as an occupying power to ensure basic survival for civilians under its control. Though Israel blames Hamas for aid disruptions, a leaked US assessment obtained by Reuters found no proof of systematic aid theft by the group.
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