Have you seen the latest images out of Gaza?
Be warned, they are disturbing. The region is facing mass starvation, according to a slate of aid groups and officials. "People in Gaza are neither dead nor alive, they are walking corpses," Philippe Lazzarini, the commissioner-general of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, recalled a colleague describing.
Here are the facts: The World Food Program says that nearly one in three people is going days without eating in Gaza and that 90,000 women and children need urgent malnutrition treatment. Doctors are reporting record rates of malnutrition since Israel's aid blockade took effect two months ago. Recent photos show Palestinian children whose bones protrude beneath their skin, and others crying out in anguish at distribution sites as they beg for food. And within the last few days, there have been harrowing reports of people being gunned down at the US-backed Israeli distribution sites. The Israel Defense Forces said in a statement that they are reviewing those incidents, though they did not respond to follow-up questions seeking more detail.
As I explain in a new piece, more than 100 aid groups issued a statement outlining how even aid workers are falling victim to starvation. The statement called on governments to "open all land crossings; restore the full flow of food, clean water, medical supplies, shelter items, and fuel through a principled, UN-led mechanism; end the siege, and agree to a ceasefire now." Also today, a group of four news organizations—Agence France-Presse, the Associated Press, BBC News, and Reuters—issued a joint statement warning that the few journalists left in Gaza are also facing starvation.
President Donald Trump, though, has been silent on American complicity in driving Palestinian children to starvation—and we are, indeed, complicit: A report from Brown University, published last fall, states that the US government had spent at least $18 billion on Israel’s military operations in Gaza since the war began with Hamas’ attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, which killed approximately 1,200 people and led to more than 250 being taken as hostages, 50 of whom reportedly remain in captivity. Trump's most recent comments on the plight of Palestinians appear to be from May, when he acknowledged "a lot of people are starving." (Spokespeople for the White House did not immediately respond to questions from Mother Jones on Thursday.)
With all the news happening in the US—the Epstein saga, misinformation emanating from the federal government, and the ongoing attacks on immigrants—it can be easy to forget about what's happening in Gaza. But none of us should look away.
—Julianne McShane
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