The American envoy Steve Witkoff and Ambassador Mike Huckabee visit the distribution site of Gaza while worsening the humanitarian crisis

President Trump Steve Witkoff’s special envoy and United States ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee visits South Gaza on Friday In the midst of international indignation About hunger, aid shortage and mortal chaos near the help distribution sites.

Witkoff and Huckabee toured one of the distribution sites of the Humanitarian Foundation of the Gaza and the Gaza Foundation of the Gaza, backed by the United States and Israel, said Huckabee.

The goal of the visit was “Learning the Truth” about GHF sites, Huckabee wrote in a publication on social networks.

“We received reports from (the IDF) and talk to people on the ground. GHF offers more than one million meals a day, an incredible feat!” Huckabee said.

Witkoff and Huckabee visited a GHF site in Rafah, the most southern city of Gaza, according to an official involved in the visit. The official requested anonymity because they were not authorized to inform the media.

“Today, we spend more than five hours within Gaza, leveling the facts in the field, evaluating the conditions and meeting with
(GHF) and other agencies. The purpose of the visit was to give (President Trump) a clear understanding of the humanitarian situation and help elaborate a plan to deliver food and medical help to the people of Gaza, “Witkoff said on social networks.

Trump “sent his envoy to serve as his eyes and ears on the ground, reflecting his deep concern and commitment to do the right thing,” said GHF spokesman, Chapin Fay, in a statement. “We are honored to inform your delegation, share our operations and demonstrate the impact of delivering 100 million meals to those who need them most.”

The four distribution sites of the group are in areas controlled by the Israeli army. Throughout their months in operation, these sites have become points of despair, with massive crowds of people who accumulate outside, but who have then been criticized by Israeli forces or have been trampled in the resulting crush.

The Israeli army says that it has only fired warning shots to people who approach their forces, and GHF says that their armed contractors have only used pepper spray or warning shots to control the crowds. But there has been a persistent pattern of people killed by Israeli shots and even heavier weapons around GHF sites in the last five months, with the number of dead by hundreds.

Witkoff’s visit comes a week after US officials moved away from high the fire conversations in Qatar, blaming Hamas and committing to looking for other ways to rescue Israeli hostages and make Gaza safe.

The White House Secretary, Karoline Leavitt, said Thursday that she was sent to elaborate a plan to boost food and help deliveries as part of an effort “to save lives and finish this crisis”, while Trump wrote on social networks that the fastest way to put an end to the crisis would be that Hamas will be delivered and released to hostages.

International organizations have said that Gaza has been on the verge of famine during the last two years. The integrated classification of the Food Security phase, the leading international authority in food crisis, said that recent developments, including the complete block of Israel in help for 2 1/2 months, means that the “worst hunger cases is currently being developed in Gaza.”

Although the help flow has resumed, even through Airdrops, the amount in Gaza remains much lower than help organizations say it is needed. A security breakdown in the territory has made it almost impossible to deliver food safely to the hungry Palestinians; Much of the limited aid input is accumulated and then sold at exorbitant prices.

In a report issued on Friday, Human Rights Watch described him as “a system of distribution of militarized and defective assistance that has turned the aid distributions into regular blood bath.”

The Army of Israel and the Prime Minister’s office did not respond to a request for comments on the report.

A video of July 30 published Thursday by the UN Office for the coordination of humanitarian affairs showed a help convoy that passed through a border crossing when they fired shots on the ground near where the crowds congregated.

“They gathered us on the road by tens of thousands of famous and desperate people who directly discharged from the back of our trucks,” said Olga Cherevko, a member of the Ocha staff.

The war between Israel and Hamas began when Hamas attacked southern Israel on October 7, 2023, killing around 1,200 people and kidnaping another 251. They still have 50 hostages, even around 20 that are believed to be alive. Most of the others have been released in cessation -fire or other agreements.

The retaliation offensive of Israel has killed more than 60,000 Palestinians, according to the Ministry of Health of Gaza, directed by Hamas. His count does not distinguish between militants and civilians. The Ministry operates under the government of Hamas. The UN and other international organizations see it as the most reliable data source about victims.

Haley Ott contributed to this report.

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