ISTANBUL
US President Donald Trump has repeatedly claimed the US provided $60 million in food aid to Gaza, but The Washington Post in a report published Saturday said only $3 million has been disbursed so far.
Citing State Department officials, the report said $30 million had been allocated from the US International Disaster Assistance fund to support food aid in Gaza through the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), a controversial US- and Israeli-backed aid group. Of that total, just 10% – around $3 million – has been delivered.
Critics have described GHF aid sites in Gaza as “death traps,” with the UN reporting that Israeli forces have killed over 1,300 Palestinians seeking food at its distribution points since late May. As Gaza teeters on the brink of famine under the ongoing Israeli blockade, its Health Ministry said Saturday that the total death toll from hunger has risen to 169, including 93 children, since Oct. 7, 2023.
According to the WaPo report, State Department spokesperson confirmed that $30 million had been allocated from the department’s International Disaster Assistance fund but declined to address Trump’s comments, which he made during public appearances over the past week.
“We gave $60 million a couple of weeks ago,” Trump told reporters at the White House on Thursday. “Nobody said anything about it. Nobody said thank you.”
The newspaper also cited a report on internal briefings by US Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff’s aides to congressional committees, saying Israel had agreed to match $30 million from the US. The Israeli government has not confirmed this, and the State Department declined to comment.
Witkoff visited an aid center in southern Gaza on Friday operated by the GHF. He said the aim was to give President Donald Trump "a clear understanding of the humanitarian situation and help craft a plan to deliver food and medical aid to the people of Gaza."