Trump officials visit Gaza aid site as hunger sparks outcry

TEL AVIV, Israel – Two senior Trump administration officials visited an aid distribution site in the Gaza Strip on Friday, as Washington’s close ally Israel faces an international outcry over the widespread hunger afflicting the war-torn Palestinian territory.

President Donald Trump’s special envoy, Steve Witkoff, and the U.S. ambassador to Israel, Mike Huckabee, toured a site run by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), which is backed by the U.S. and Israel.

Huckabee shared photos of the visit on X, where he called the GHF’s work “incredible.”

“We received briefings from the Israel Defense Forces and spoke to folks on the ground,” he wrote.

Huckabee said he went to Gaza with Witkoff in order “to learn the truth” about the humanitarian situation there after 21 months of war.

In one of the photos, Witkoff could be seen wearing a black “MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN” hat.

White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt said on Thursday that the two officials would use the visit to help “secure a plan to deliver more food” to Gaza.

The GHF is highly contentions. With the help of U.S. contractors, it distributes humanitarian aid through channels that bypass U.N. agencies, which have long played a leading role in delivering food, medicine and supplies to Palestinians.

There are frequent reports of desperately hungry Palestinians being killed while attempting to access food at GHF distribution sites.

On Monday, U.S. President Donald Trump said there was “real starvation” occurring in Gaza.

Israel has significantly limited aid deliveries for months, allowing little to no humanitarian access to the coastal territory, although its restrictions have eased in recent days.