Jerusalem
CNN
—
United States and Israeli officials are discussing a mechanism to deliver aid to Gaza that bypasses Hamas, an Israeli source familiar with the matter and a State Department official told CNN. The official said an announcement could be made “in the coming days.”
The initiative to deliver aid comes as a total Israeli blockade of aid deliveries to the Palestinian enclave approaches its third month, and after US President Donald Trump told Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu late last month that “we’ve got to be good to Gaza.”
The delivery mechanism in the works would allow aid to reach the Palestinian population with safeguards to ensure it is not diverted by Hamas or Islamic Jihad, according to a State Department spokesperson.
An unnamed private foundation would manage the aid mechanism and the delivery of the humanitarian supplies into Gaza, the spokesperson said.
“Safeguards are finally in place. Israel remains secure, Hamas empty handed, and Gazans with access to critical aid,” the spokesperson said, adding that the mechanism “helps fulfill President Trump’s commitment” to help Gaza. The spokesperson described the project as an element of “creative thinking” but did not provide any details on how it would function in the besieged enclave.
The US expects the United Nations and international aid organizations to work with the framework of the foundation’s mechanism in order to ensure that supplies do not reach Hamas, the spokesperson said.
Axios initially reported on Saturday that the US, Israel and representatives of a new international foundation are close to an agreement on how to resume the delivery of aid, citing two anonymous Israeli and US sources
The Israeli source who spoke to CNN would not say if a deal was imminent.
For two months, Israel has carried out a total siege of Gaza, refusing to allow in a single truck of humanitarian aid or commercial goods – the longest period Israel has imposed such a total blockade.
Israel says it cut off the entry of humanitarian aid to pressure Hamas to release hostages. But international organizations say its actions violate international law, with some accusing Israel of using starvation as a weapon of war – a war crime.
While taking questions from reporters late last month, Trump was asked whether the topic of aid for Gaza came up during his recent conversation with Netanyahu.
“Gaza came up,” Trump responded. “And I said: ‘We’ve got to be good to Gaza’ because people are – those people are suffering.”
“There’s a very big need for medicine, food and medicine. We’re taking care of it,” he said.
Late last year, ahead of the total Israeli blockade of Gaza, the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) warned that the risk of famine persists across the entire territory, projecting that 16% of the population would be in famine by April.
Dr. Ahmad Al-Farra, the head of the pediatric department at Nasser Medical Complex in Gaza warned on Saturday that “a looming health catastrophe is threatening the lives of hundreds of thousands” in the enclave.
“We are facing the danger of a massive wave of deaths due to malnutrition if the current humanitarian crisis continues unaddressed,” he told CNN.
Earlier Saturday, two-month-old Janan Saleh Al-Sakkafi died due to malnutrition at Al-Rantisi Hospital, Dr. Munir Al Barsh, Director General of the Ministry of Health in Gaza told CNN.
The World Food Programme says it is ready to surge enough aid into Gaza to feed the entire population of about two million for up to two months. UNRWA, the main UN agency supporting Palestinians, said it has nearly 3,000 trucks filled with aid waiting to cross into Gaza. Both need Israel to lift its blockade to get that aid in.
Netanyahu is under intense pressure from far-right members of his fragile governing coalition to continue fighting in Gaza and withhold aid as a means of pressure against Hamas.
Last month, Defense Minister Israel Katz said his government is working on a mechanism “through civilian companies” to distribute humanitarian aid in Gaza at a “later” stage, prompting a severe backlash from extremist politicians.
“As long as our hostages are languishing in tunnels, there is absolutely no reason for even a single gram of food or any aid to enter Gaza,” Minister of National Security Itamar Ben Gvir said at the time.
Katz later clarified that “no humanitarian aid is set to enter Gaza.”
In early April, COGAT, the Israeli agency that manages policy for the Palestinian territories and the flow of aid into the strip, announced a “new authorization mechanism” designed to “prevent Hamas infiltration into humanitarian organizations.”
“The mechanism is designed to support aid organizations, enhance oversight and accountability, and ensure that assistance reaches the civilian population in need, rather than being diverted and stolen by Hamas,” it said, without giving any details as to when it would be implemented.
CNN’s Ibrahim Dahman contributed to this report.
