Israeli Heritage Minister Amichai Eliyahu has said Israel should not be concerned about hunger in Gaza, drawing condemnation from across the political spectrum.
The far-right Otzma Yehudit politician dismissed renewed UN warnings of a man-made famine in the besieged enclave, stating that the Israeli government is “racing toward erasing Gaza.”
“Thank God we are erasing this evil. All of Gaza will be Jewish,” Eliyahu told Radio Kol Barama on Thursday, according to Ynet.
“We shouldn’t be dealing with hunger in Gaza –let the world take care of them. No nation feeds its enemies. Have we completely lost our minds? Should we care about their evening meal?” he added.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu distanced himself from the comments, noting that Eliyahu is not a member of the Security Cabinet, which determines the conduct of the war.
“This government’s policy is clear and united. His statements do not represent it,” Netanyahu said.
Israeli Ambassador to the US Yechiel Leiter also condemned Eliyahu’s remarks, calling them “wrong, foolish, and totally unrepresentative of the government and people of Israel.” Posting on X, he insisted that Israel is committed to creating a mechanism to deliver humanitarian aid to Gazan civilians “BUT NOT THROUGH HAMAS.”
According to local health authorities, more than 59,000 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza since October 2023, including at least 113 who died from hunger. World Health Organization chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said Wednesday that Israel’s “blockade” has pushed Gaza to the brink of “mass starvation.”
Philippe Lazzarini, head of the UN’s Palestinian refugee agency (UNRWA), has called on Israel to allow access for 6,000 aid trucks currently stalled in Egypt and Jordan.
Israeli officials, meanwhile, have accused Hamas and other armed groups of hoarding supplies and attacking civilians at distribution points.
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