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President says kids in Gaza need to be fed, while making contradictory statements about his stances on Israel
By G. A. McNeeley
Photo via United Nations Relief and Works Agency: a 4-year old Palestinian girl who died of starvation in 2024 (CC by SA 4.0)
August 5, 2025 (Gaza) -- President Donald Trump acknowledged on July 28, that there is “real starvation” in Gaza, as Israel faces intense pressure to lift restrictions on aid, while hunger spreads in the besieged enclave, according to NBC News.
However, Trump has also doubled down on his support for Israel, even after he had appeared to give the green light to British Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s plan to recognize a Palestinian state, according to The Guardian.
Amid signs of opposition among his own supporters to Israel’s military operation in Gaza, Trump criticized Starmer’s plan to grant recognition as “rewarding Hamas,” even after having not taken issue with it when they both met in Scotland, according to The Guardian.
What are political leaders and experts saying about starvation in Gaza?
Trump, speaking in Scotland, said that the United States would set up food centers in Gaza as “we have to get the kids fed,” according to NBC News. He also said that he had seen images of Palestinians on TV, and added that “those children look very hungry.”
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said, in contrast to what the aid group assessments are saying, that no one is starving in Gaza, according to The Guardian.
No international media outlets have been allowed into Gaza by Israel’s military forces, NPR reports, forcing the world to rely on Palestinian journalists and others such as aid workers to report on conditions inside Gaza.
The Israel Defense Forces did begin limited pauses in fighting in three populated areas of Gaza on Sunday, July 27, for 10 hours a day, according to NBC News. However, this partial easing of restrictions in Gaza has done little to quell fears about the spiraling hunger crisis.
Tom Fletcher, United Nations Emergency Relief Coordinator, said that “this is progress, but vast amounts of aid are needed to stave off famine and a catastrophic health crisis,” in a statement released by The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.
Fletcher’s warnings were echoed by others, as The Palestinian Health Ministry in the enclave said on Monday, July 28, that 14 deaths over the past 24 hours were attributed to “famine and malnutrition,” with two children among those killed, according to NBC News.
Humanitarian groups and doctors have warned for weeks of malnutrition in Gaza, with Israel allowing only a “basic” amount of food in since May, when it lifted its blockade barring the entry of aid into the enclave.
The Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT), the Israeli military's liaison with the Palestinians, said in a statement that just under 30 aid packages carrying food were airdropped over Gaza on Sunday, July 27, according to NBC News.
However, over 1,000 people, including children, have been killed by Israeli forces while waiting for aid, ever since a new distribution system led by the controversial United States and Israel-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation was implemented in late May.
New videos of Israeli hostages ramp up pressure
Release of hostage videos in recent days show emaciated Jewish prisoners, including one stating he is “digging his own grave,”CNN reports. Israeli media reports suggest Netanyahu may plan on stepping up a military response.
But some hostage families are urging Netanyahu to strike a deal with Hamas to bring home the remaining hostages taken prisoner during the Oct. 7, 2023 massacre when Hamas attacked Israel, according to CNN.
Trump reiterates opposition to recognizing Palestinian state
Trump, when talking to journalists onboard Air Force One before his return to Washington, said that the United States was “not in that camp”, when referring to Starmer’s pledge, according to The Guardian.
"We never did discuss it," Trump told reporters. "You're rewarding Hamas if you do that. I don't think they should be rewarded," he said, according to Reuters.
Those comments contrasted with Trump’s restrained stance when he and Starmer met at Turnberry in Scotland on Monday, July 28, after Starmer said Britain would give recognition by September unless Israel met certain conditions, according to The Guardian.
“I’m not going to take a position, I don’t mind him [Starmer] taking a position,” Trump said, when asked if Starmer should bow to heavy pressure from Labour Members of Parliament to follow France’s lead, according to The Independent.
However, on Friday, July 25, Trump dismissed French President Emmanuel Macron's plan to recognize a Palestinian state at the United Nations General Assembly. "What he says doesn't matter," Trump told reporters at the White House, according to Reuters. "He's a very good guy. I like him, but that statement doesn't carry weight."
San Diego Congressman speaks out on Gaza
Representative Scott Peters (D-San Diego), on Tuesday, July 29, shared a statement with San Diego Jewish World, about the humanitarian crisis in Gaza.
“It is long past time to end the Gaza conflict, with the return of all hostages and the end of military operations. But an active war zone is no excuse for not doing everything possible to prevent the unnecessary suffering confronting Palestinians who are caught in the crossfire between Israel and Hamas,” Peters said, in his statement.
“This week’s announcement of multiple air drops and aid convoys, humanitarian pauses in fighting, and the designation of secure routes for the wider dissemination of assistance provides renewed hope. But hundreds of truckloads of aid are currently sitting at the Gaza border waiting to be distributed,” Peters added. “There is no justification for delay.”
Jewish leader calls for humanitarian aid in Gaza
Bruce Tomar, International President of the Federation of Jewish Men’s Clubs, on Tuesday, July 29, shared a statement with San Diego Jewish World, about Israel’s War in Gaza.
“The war between Israel and Hamas has brought immense pain and loss to countless lives. We have grieved deeply for our Israeli brothers and sisters, for hostages and soldiers, for those, and their families, murdered at the hands of Hamas on October 7,” Tomar said, in his statement.
“We therefore also call on the Israeli government to do everything in its power to reduce the suffering of innocent civilians and to ensure that humanitarian aid reaches those who desperately need it. Justice and security for one group of people must never come at the complete expense of another,” Tomar added.
Conservatives speak out on Gaza relief
Steve Bannon, the former White House adviser, told Politico’s Playbook Podcast that “it seems that for the under-30-year-old MAGA base, Israel has almost no support, and Netanyahu’s attempt to save himself politically by dragging America in deeper to another Middle East war has turned off a large swath of older MAGA diehards.”
Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Georgia), said on X, “It’s the most truthful and easiest thing to say that Oct 7th in Israel was horrific and all hostages must be returned, but so is the genocide, humanitarian crisis, and starvation happening in Gaza.”
Polls show drop in public support for Israeli actions in Gaza
These comments came as a recent Gallup poll shows that support among Americans for Israel’s actions in Gaza dropped down to 32%, which is the lowest since the organization began asking the question in November 2023 -- one month after the Hamas raid that killed nearly 1,200 Israeli civilians, and led to another 250 to be taken hostage, according to The Guardian.
While another Gallup poll shows that support for Israel’s offensive is at 71% among Republicans, Thom Tillis (R-North Carolina) said Gaza could be a political problem for Trump, according to The Hill.
“I think that the American people at the end of the day are a kind people. They don’t like seeing suffering, nor do I think the president does,” Tillis said. “If you see starvation, you try to fix it.”
Sources:
https://www.nbcnews.com/world/gaza/israel-aid-gaza-starvation-food-military-pauses-rcna221415
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/jul/30/trump-israel-rebukes-starmer-palestinian-state
https://www.cnn.com/2025/08/04/middleeast/israel-hostage-videos-hamas-netanyahu-analysis-latam-intl
https://www.politico.com/newsletters/playbook/2025/07/29/trumps-turning-point-on-gaza-00480948
https://x.com/RepMTG/status/1950000279593607551
https://news.gallup.com/poll/692948/u.s.-back-israel-military-action-gaza-new-low.aspx
https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/5426533-lawmakers-gaza-humanitarian-crisis-trump-netanyahu/
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