Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu came under pressure from all sides Sunday as his controversial plan for a new offensive in the Gaza Strip drew backlash at home and internationally, while malnutrition deaths in the Palestinian enclave continued to climb.
The proposed military offensive, which the Israeli government announced Friday, has been widely condemned by critics who say it is likely to worsen the humanitarian crisis in Gaza and further endanger the hostages still being held by Hamas.
At a news conference, a defiant Netanyahu continued to deny there is starvation in Gaza and claimed the situation is being exaggerated. He conceded there was “deprivation” in Gaza, but said “no one in Gaza would have survived after two years of war” if Israel was implementing a “starvation policy.”
He went on to defend the proposed Gaza takeover, saying Israel had “no choice” but to “finish the job” and “defeat Hamas,” while claiming that “hundreds of aid trucks have gone into Gaza.”
Netanyahu said his goal was to rescue the remaining hostages and recover the remains of those who had died. Of the 50 hostages still being held by Hamas, Israel believes about 20 are alive.
“If we don’t do anything, we are not going to get them out,” he said. “The move I’m talking about has the possibility of getting them out.”
Netanyahu’s remarks came as the United Nations Security Council held an emergency meeting to discuss Israel’s proposed offensive. The United States said at the meeting that Israel had the right to defend itself and to decide what is necessary for its security.
The plan was condemned by other Western governments, as well as U.N. officials who said it would only deepen the suffering of Palestinian civilians in Gaza, where humanitarian aid has been limited since Israel lifted a 2½-month blockade in May.
“This is no longer a looming hunger crisis — this is starvation, pure and simple,” a U.N. humanitarian coordination official, Ramesh Rajasingham, told the council.
The Gaza Health Ministry said Sunday that five more people, including two children, had died from malnutrition and starvation in the past 24 hours, bringing the total to 217, including 100 children.
The U.N. and other international organizations say the humanitarian aid arriving in Gaza through airdrops and on a small number of trucks is far from sufficient to feed the enclave’s population of 2 million people.
On Saturday, a 14-year-old boy named…
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