Witkoff visits aid distribution centers in Gaza

2025-08-01 17:27:00, Kosova & Bota CNA

US special envoy Steve Witkoff has inspected aid distribution centers in Gaza, which are run by an organization supported by the United States and Israel.

Witkoff's visit on Friday came as the United Nations human rights office said Israeli forces have killed starving Palestinians waiting for aid.

Also, this visit took place at the same time as a report was published by the international human rights organization, Human Rights Watch (HRW), which also accused Israeli forces of "regular bloodshed" near aid centers, which are run by organizations supported by the US and Israel.

The United Nations Human Rights Office in the Palestinian territories said that since May 27, at least 1,373 people have been killed while trying to get aid into Gaza — 105 of them in the last two days of July alone.

US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee wrote on X that he and Witkoff visited Gaza to "learn the truth" about the aid distribution centers operated by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF).

"We were briefed by the Israeli military and talked to people on the ground. The GHF provides over 1 million food meals a day," Huckabee said.

He added that Hamas - the Palestinian group designated a terrorist organization by the United States and the European Union - "hates the GHF because it gives people food and does not allow food to be looted by Hamas."

The GHF began operating in Gaza after Israel eased the blockade imposed at the end of May on the Palestinian territory.

The day before, Witkoff was in Israel where he held talks with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. They discussed how to end the 22-month war, how to send more aid to the Palestinians and how to release hostages being held by Hamas.

Netanyahu has promised to destroy Hamas and release the hostages, but is under great international pressure to end the war, which has caused great destruction in Gaza and numerous casualties.

The war in Gaza began on October 7, 2023, when Hamas militants attacked southern Israel, killing nearly 1,200 people and kidnapping nearly 250. About 50 people are believed to still be held in Gaza, while others have been released under preliminary ceasefire agreements.

As a result of the Israeli offensive, more than 60,000 people have been killed in Gaza since the start of the war, the Health Ministry said, estimating that most of the victims were women and children. However, the ministry does not distinguish between civilian victims and Hamas fighters in the figures it publishes for the victims./ REL