People are starving in Gaza: Trump

WASHINGTON

US President Donald Trump said Friday that people in the Gaza Strip are starving and he pledged to solve the issue.

"We want to take care of the people. Look, people are starving," Trump told Fox News in Abu Dhabi, the last leg of his three-nation Middle East tour.

"One of the things that one of the three great leaders that I saw two nights ago said to me, 'Please help the people, the Palestinians,'” said Trump. “He said they're starving, and he meant it with his heart ... so, I've already started working on that. It's a deep problem, but we'll get it solved," he added.

Since March 2, Israel has kept Gaza’s crossings closed to food, medical and humanitarian aid, deepening an already worsening humanitarian crisis in the enclave.

Trump said Gaza is a "nasty" place.

"It’s been that way for years. I think it should become a free zone, you know, freedom, I call it a freedom zone," he added.

When asked whether he is frustrated with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Trump said: "No, look, he's got a tough situation."

Trump said Netanyahu is an "angry man" and "he should be, because of October 7, and he's been hurt badly by that."

The president first floated his proposal for the US to take ownership of Gaza in February. The plan was widely rebuffed by nations around the world, but the US president has continued to raise it sporadically over the course of the past three months.

The Israeli army has pursued an offensive on Gaza since Oct. 7, 2023, killing 53,000 Palestinians, most of them women and children.