People in Gaza are starving to death: This is the assessment from everyone except high-ranking Israeli officials.

U.S. President Donald Trump made headlines Monday when he confirmed that reports of famine in Gaza are accurate. “That’s real starvation stuff. I see it, and you can’t fake that,” Trump said.

Trump’s comments contrasted those of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who said over the weekend while speaking at a Christian conference hosted by an adviser to Trump that there is “no starvation in Gaza,” according to reports.

Netanyahu also rebuked a widely-believed suspicion that Israel is deliberately starving the people of Gaza to get rid of them, whether by death or migration, and permanently occupy the area. “There is no policy of starvation in Gaza and there is no starvation in Gaza,” Netanyahu said. The prime minister did admit the situation was “difficult,” but also claimed that information and images circulating in Western media “are carefully staged or manipulated” by Hamas.

Israel has pointed to one photo in particular that has been included in Western media reports. Israel used its X account to point out that a picture of a child that appears emaciated actually portrays a boy with cerebral palsy. The post points out that the boy is standing next to family members who don’t show any symptoms of starvation.

That Hamas, a brutal terrorist organization, would exploit the disaster in Gaza is undoubtedly true. But, as some argue, Israel has made itself an easy target of villification. Jewish scientist and political commentator Eric Weinstein recently pointed out on The Diary of a CEO podcast that the genius of Hamas has been goading Israel into carpet bombing Gaza and unleashing such a torrent of indiscriminate violence and destruction that the world would turn on the Jewish State.

While it’s impossible to ascertain a truly accurate death toll, an aggregate of sources corroborate the Gaza Health Ministry’s claim. The Gaza Health Ministry says that about 60,000 people — a majority of them civilians —have been killed since Israel’s campaign to root out Hamas began. Some believe that tally is higher — much higher. Michael Spagat, a researcher at the University of London, estimates that more than 80,000 people have been killed by Israel.

Despite Netanyahu’s claim that there is no famine crisis in Gaza, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) announced on Sunday that it will began pausing military activity every day in densely populated areas to “increase the scope of humanitarian aid entering the Gaza Strip,” The Times of Israel reported. Reports suggest the problem is not a lack of food arriving to the region, but various obstacles that prevent it from getting to the people who need it. The daily pause in military operations is intended to create safe passages for humanitarian convoys as well as civilians. Multiple news outlets have reported that Israeli soldiers have repeatedly fired at people who have veered off paths to food sites. Israel says that it is concerned that Hamas might pilfer food intended for civilians.

Meanwhile, there are reports that Israeli leadership is mulling over fully occupying the Gaza strip. Per Times of Israel:

Netanyahu held a cabinet meeting on Monday evening devoted to Gaza, during which the military presented a new plan for a “siege” of the Strip, which would again cut off all humanitarian aid, according to the Kan broadcaster. Other Hebrew media reports, quoting unnamed sources, said ministers are weighing fully occupying Gaza, and/or annexing parts of the Strip, if Hamas continues to reject efforts to finalize a ceasefire and hostage release deal, but that Jerusalem will first give the negotiations another chance.

Hamas is still holding approximately 50 of the 250 hostages it kidnapped on October 7, 2023. More than half are believed to be dead. Israel and Hamas have not been able to agree on terms of their release. Among its demands, Hamas wants a permanent ceasefire and full Israeli withdrawal from Gaza, as well as the release of Palestinian prisoners. Israel has opposed Hamas’s demand for a permanent ceasefire unless it includes the disarmament of Hamas or the exile of its leaders.