In private, some Israeli officers admit that Gaza is on the brink of famine

Some Israeli military officials have concluded in private that the Palestinians in Gaza are faced with a widespread famine unless aid deliveries are restored in a few weeks, according to three Israeli Defense officials familiar with conditions in the enclave.

For months, Israel argued that its blockade on food and fuel in Gaza did not threaten a major threat to civil life in the territory, even if the United Nations and other aid agencies said that a famine was taking advantage of.

But Israeli military officers who monitor the humanitarian conditions in Gaza have warned their commanders in recent days than the blockade is not lifted quickly, many areas of the enclave will probably lack enough food to meet minimum daily nutritional needs, according to defense officials. They spoke under the cover of anonymity to share sensitive details.

Because it takes time to increase humanitarian deliveries, the police said that immediate measures were necessary to ensure that the system to provide aid could be reinstated quickly enough to prevent famine.

The growing recognition in a part of the Israeli security establishment of a hunger crisis in Gaza comes when Israel has committed to considerably extend the war to Gaza to destroy Hamas and bring the remaining hostages – twins aims that more than 19 months of war have not yet been carried out. On Tuesday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was provocative and said the soldiers will resume fighting in the coming days “in full strength to finish work” and “would eliminate Hamas”.

Mr. Netanyahu’s declaration came the same day that President Trump landed in Saudi Arabia, as part of his first major foreign trip since his re -election. Trump, however, does not go to Israel, highlighting a growing gap between two leaders who do not agree more and more on some of the most critical security problems with which Israel is confronted.