Senators press State Department on Gaza aid after reports of starvation; Rubio says aid flows resumed but urged broader solutions

Senators described recent satellite images and UN reports showing neighborhood destruction in Gaza and rising child malnutrition and deaths. Senator Jeff Merkley and others framed the use of food denial and destruction of homes as tactics that can amount to forced displacement.

“Families in Gaza are starving while the food they need is sitting at the border,” Senator Van Hollen quoted humanitarian advocates. Rubio said he had pressed partners and that aid had started to flow again: “We were pleased to see that aid is starting to flow in again. I understand your point that it's not in sufficient amounts, but we were pleased to see that decision was made.” He said the administration had met with the World Food Programme in Rome to discuss distribution plans.

Rubio and several senators agreed that durable recovery in Gaza would require a governing authority capable of providing security and services. Rubio said one long-term objective is to “eliminate Hamas” as a governing actor; he repeatedly framed a return to long-term stability as tied to a governing authority that can provide security and permit reconstruction and returns.

Senators sought stronger U.S. pressure to increase aid deliveries and prevent starvation; Rubio said he and U.S. partners had conveyed concerns and urged Israel to allow more assistance. He noted that some nations had taken public positions and that the U.S. had engaged diplomatically to increase flows and to identify countries willing to accept voluntary temporary relocation of civilians in limited circumstances.

Rubio said the United States had urged partners to permit aid and that additional trucks were en route; he also repeated the administration position that Hamas’s continued existence would make long-term prosperity difficult to achieve.