During a Senate hearing on Capitol Hill on Tuesday, USAID administrator Samantha Power, as reported by @blaise_malley, presented a bleak picture of the humanitarian situation in Gaza, emphasizing the dire conditions and international efforts to alleviate it. Following discussions between President Biden and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu last week, Israel agreed to reopen the Erez border crossing, which was destroyed by Hamas on October 7th, to facilitate aid delivery. Despite Israel's claim of allowing more aid trucks into Gaza, a cash crisis has severely limited Palestinians' ability to buy food, and the U.S. has acknowledged for the first time that famine has already begun in the region. Power described the situation as the worst humanitarian catastrophe witnessed by many aid workers, using the term "unprecedented." The Biden administration is under pressure to address the crisis, with reports indicating that starvation is widespread in northern Gaza, particularly in the north. International officials have criticized Israel for not allowing sufficient aid trucks into Gaza, exacerbating the food crisis. Rep. Castro highlighted the urgency by stating, "Food must flow. Food has not flowed in," during a discussion where Power confirmed famine is already occurring in Gaza. Under heavy U.S. pressure, Israel has promised to ramp up aid to Gaza dramatically, but days later, there are few signs of those promises materializing, according to international officials.
While Israel says it has dramatically increased the number of aid trucks entering the territory, U.N. workers report only a slight uptick — possibly because they count trucks differently: https://t.co/mUkhC60jmT
Biden Admin Tells Congress Famine Is Underway In Gaza For First Time https://t.co/yVN6dJ1Qcc
LIVE: UN aid coordinator speaks on the humanitarian situation in Gaza https://t.co/hMehUPHAvX
US aid official has said that famine has begun in northern Gaza. Airdrops of humanitarian aid for civilians in Gaza has been of little help #Gaza #Israel #Famine https://t.co/7PvjCOeMuv
Aid ‘still not reaching Gaza’, as top US official warns famine has started https://t.co/e03P7oue1d
U.S. Official Admits All of Gaza May Face “Imminent Risk of Starvation” https://t.co/hmtOIHkluL
Top Government Official Says U.S. Acknowledges Famine In Gaza https://t.co/FvxxkTc0hQ
Under heavy U.S. pressure, Israel has promised to ramp up aid to Gaza dramatically, but days later, there are few signs of those promises materializing and international officials say starvation is widespread in hard-hit northern Gaza. https://t.co/arnNgRHYGt
The U.N. says Israel is still not letting in enough aid trucks as Samantha Power says famine has already arrived in northern Gaza. https://t.co/bercvP23gX
Israel has still not done enough to resolve the hunger crisis in Gaza and famine could be imminent, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters on Thursday. ✍️@tovahlazaroff https://t.co/knvs77CHmz
Israel has still not done enough to resolve the hunger crisis in Gaza and famine could be imminent, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters on Thursday. https://t.co/knvs77Dfc7
Israel has still not done enough to resolve the hunger crisis in Gaza and famine could be imminent, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters in Washington on Thursday. https://t.co/knvs77CHmz
Samantha Power spoke of the dire situation Gazans face this week on Capitol Hill https://t.co/3xoGNlS7TA
A border crossing from Israel into northern Gaza remains closed a week after Israel promised to open it for deliveries of aid, as a top US official warned that famine has begun ⬇️ @mollyblackall and @KieronMonks report https://t.co/h3aovvopCs
Samantha Powers acknowledging that Northern Gaza is likely already facing famine. https://t.co/dyJtgIaWwj
U.S. Envoy Admits All of Gaza May Face “Imminent Risk of Starvation” https://t.co/hmtOIHkluL
USAID chief Samantha Power says famine has already arrived in northern Gaza, yet Israel is slow-walking the opening of a border crossing directly into northern Gaza, despite Netanyahu's promise to Biden. https://t.co/NJ8PZcJRh4
Even as U.S. officials applaud Israel's initial steps to address dire humanitarian conditions in Gaza, the Biden administration and Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu are still openly at odds over Israel's planned invasion of Rafah. https://t.co/4wypGaPe85
Samantha Power, the administrator of the U.S. Agency for International Development, told lawmakers that the destruction of granaries, markets and arable land, plus insufficient aid trucks entering Gaza, left it in a food crisis. Follow for live updates. https://t.co/JAIYEixoV3
#Israel to open new north #Gaza crossing for overseas aid Track updates https://t.co/7Vexeaq8FN https://t.co/TKZmBv0JnM
Power refers to “humanitarian access challenges” in the north of Gaza that contribute to what she acknowledges is the catastrophic starvation of children. Oh, you mean the massacres of aid workers and masses of hungry people with weapons sent by your administration? https://t.co/2BfDWmuHx1
Akbar had the story a week ago that Israel’s siege is causing a famine in Gaza, per USAID officials, & only now is the Biden admin acknowledging that is in fact their assessment https://t.co/oM8OD5GD5k
Rep: Castro: So famine is already occurring there (in Gaza)? USAID Administrator Samantha Power: Yes. More later... Rep: Castro: Kids can't be starved because there are two groups at war with each other ... USAID Administrator Power: Food must flow. Food has not flowed in… https://t.co/xclO88B2wO
NEW: Citing my scoop on USAID officials privately telling Biden admin colleagues famine is already underway in Gaza, @JoaquinCastrotx got @SamanthaJPower to confirm that is her assessment (from 2:48:50 on). Major confirmation from the US. https://t.co/CGxvf8wWxi
USAID head Samantha Power said that, according to many aid workers that she met in Israel last month, Gaza was the worst humanitarian catastrophe that they had experienced in their careers. “Unprecedented was the word they used,” she said. https://t.co/3xoGNlSFJ8
Israel is facing pressure to reopen the Erez crossing, which was a daily corridor for Palestinians working in Israel before Hamas destroyed it on October 7th. Anti-Israel commentators are saying the fact that it is closed is proof that Israel has been withholding aid. It's… https://t.co/eZ2BKfKCSL
Following discussions between President Biden and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu last week, Israel agreed to reopen the Erez border crossing into northern Gaza and facilitate aid delivery through the nearby port of Ashdod. https://t.co/GrY0k5BXFV
Israel says it's allowing more aid trucks into Gaza, but a cash crisis is making it impossible for many Palestinians to buy food. https://t.co/VSek8JD0QD
Biden's USAID administrator told Congress about the dire situation in #Gaza https://t.co/3xoGNlSFJ8
USAID administrator @SamanthaJPower presented a bleak picture of the humanitarian situation in Gaza and international efforts to alleviate it during a Senate hearing on Tuesday. More from @blaise_malley https://t.co/3xoGNlSFJ8