ISTANBUL

US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee announced on Friday that a food aid operation for Gaza is set to begin soon and will proceed without Israel's involvement, according to remarks reported by the daily The Jerusalem Post.

Speaking to reporters outside the US Embassy in Jerusalem, Huckabee said the planned aid delivery will be carried out through a mechanism agreed on by multiple partners and will not rely on any direct military coordination.

“President Trump wants food distributed in Gaza safely and efficiently,” Huckabee said.

The announcement comes amid reports in both Israeli and American media that Washington is pushing for a new UN Security Council-backed initiative to deliver humanitarian aid to the besieged Gaza Strip without direct involvement from the Israeli military.

“Several partners have agreed to a mechanism to distribute aid to Gaza,” the official said, without naming the partners, adding that they have "committed funding but do not want to be identified yet.”

Huckabee emphasized that Israel will not participate in the upcoming operation.

The precise timeline and logistics for the aid delivery have not yet been publicly disclosed.

Since March 2, Israel has kept Gaza’s crossings closed to food, medical, and humanitarian aid, deepening an already humanitarian crisis in the enclave, according to government, human rights, and international reports.

Nearly 52,800 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza in a brutal Israeli onslaught since October 2023, most of them women and children.

The International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants last November for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.

Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on the enclave.