Donald Trump on Friday supported aid to the Palestinians, saying that people in Gaza are starving and added that he expects “many good things” in the coming month.
According to media reports, when asked by reporters whether he supports Israeli plans to expand the war in Gaza, the United States (U.S.) president replied:
“I think a lot of good things will happen over the next month and we’ll see. We also have to help the Palestinians. You know, a lot of people are starving in Gaza, so we have to look at both sides.”
Trump stated that people in Gaza are starving and that the U.S. will “fix the situation” in that territory, which suffered another wave of intense Israeli airstrikes during the night.
On the last day of his Gulf tour, in Abu Dhabi, the U.S. president told reporters:
“We’re looking at Gaza. And we’ll fix it. A lot of people are starving.”
Israeli officials deny that the strict blockade imposed on that devastated territory more than ten weeks ago has caused famine in Gaza, and Trump’s comments will likely be interpreted as further evidence of tensions between Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his closest ally.
There had been widespread hopes that Trump’s visit to Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) could lead to a new ceasefire or the renewal of humanitarian aid to Gaza.
Instead, attacks and bombings over the past 72 hours have further raised the level of violence in Gaza to its highest point in recent weeks, and the death toll is approaching that of the early days of Israel’s renewed offensive after the fragile ceasefire collapsed in March.
Some officials in the Palestinian territory claim that the number of those killed in Israeli attacks on Wednesday and Thursday reached as many as 250. Estimates of the number of casualties during the night and on Friday morning in Gaza vary.
