lIsraeli security officials are responding to recent reports about "famine" in Gaza City and clarifying that while the humanitarian situation in Gaza is difficult, there is no famine in the city.
Security officials state that alongside the successes in Operation Gideon’s Chariots, including the capture of 75% of the Gaza Strip, over two million of Gaza's residents are now confined to 25% of the area, in extremely crowded conditions.
Israel is preparing to bring more aid into the Strip, including the resumption of airdrops. According to the sources, the Jordanians are preparing to begin airdropping aid later on Friday.
The IDF and the Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT) stressed that Hamas has created a false campaign, the "starvation campaign," aimed at pressuring Israel to end the war while simultaneously attempting to improve the conditions for negotiating a ceasefire deal in Doha.
Israel is pointing an accusing finger at the UN's actions in Gaza. Until Sunday, the UN had refused to lead truck convoys from Kerem Shalom and Zikim for its own reasons. However, following Israel's protests, the UN began collecting trucks to enter Gaza, with a target of 150 trucks per day.
Israel has decided to open all land routes to allow humanitarian aid to flow into Gaza from both Jordan and Egypt.
Later on Friday the IDF emphasized: "Israel does not limit the number of trucks entering the Gaza Strip, and it is the collection issue that is preventing the continuous delivery of humanitarian aid into Gaza."
"Despite claims of Israeli restrictions on humanitarian aid, the Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT) released extensive footage today, showing hundreds of aid trucks on the Palestinian side of the Kerem Shalom Crossing. The trucks belonging to the international aid organizations and the UN agencies, most of which contain food, have accumulated over recent months on the Gazan side of the crossings and are awaiting collection and distribution by those organizations following a security inspection."