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Netanyahu accused the UN and its partner agencies of spreading falsehoods and showing double standards
Netanyahu’s office claimed that Israel has never pursued a “policy of starvation”. (Image via AP/AFP)
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has strongly rejected the United Nations’ declaration of famine in Gaza, calling it “an outright lie” and describing the report as a “modern blood libel” against the Jewish state.
In a series of posts shared by his office on X, Netanyahu accused the UN and its partner agencies of spreading falsehoods and showing double standards.
Netanyahu’s office claimed that Israel has never pursued a “policy of starvation”, stating instead that the country has enabled the delivery of over 2 million tons of aid to Gaza.
“The IPC report is an outright lie. Israel does not have a policy of starvation. Israel has a policy of preventing starvation. Since the beginning of the war Israel has enabled 2 million tons of aid to enter the Gaza Strip, over one ton of aid per person,” the post said.
The IPC report is an outright lie.Israel does not have a policy of starvation. Israel has a policy of preventing starvation.
Since the beginning of the war Israel has enabled 2 million tons of aid to enter the Gaza Strip, over one ton of aid per person.
— Prime Minister of Israel (@IsraeliPM) August 22, 2025
The posts described the UN-backed report as “fabrications” and said these claims would soon collapse, just as previous reports blaming Israel had.
“This is not analysis,” one of the posts read. “It is a modern blood libel, spreading like wildfire through prejudice. History will judge those who peddle it. The IPC must end its double standards against the Jewish state.”
The term blood libel refers to a historic and false accusation that Jews used the blood of Christian children for religious rituals, a myth that fuelled centuries of antisemitic violence in Europe.
The Israeli PM’s office also said that Israel would continue to “act responsibly, ensuring aid reaches Gaza’s civilians while destroying Hamas’s terror machine. The Hamas-orchestrated “starvation campaign” will not deter us from freeing our hostages and eliminating Hamas.”
What The UN-backed Report Said
The UN officially declared a famine in Gaza on Friday, stating that Israel’s systematic obstruction of humanitarian aid during the war was a key reason for the crisis. The Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC), a UN-backed initiative based in Rome, said the famine currently affects 500,000 people in the Gaza governorate — about a fifth of the enclave’s population.
The IPC warned that the famine could spread to Deir el-Balah and Khan Yunis by the end of September, potentially impacting two-thirds of Gaza. It described the situation as “catastrophic”, marked by starvation, destitution and death.
Meanwhile, Israel’s military campaign continued in full force. Heavy bombardments were reported across Gaza, with Defence Minister Israel Katz vowing to destroy Gaza City unless Hamas agrees to disarm and release hostages.
The war, sparked by Hamas’s October 2023 attack that killed 1,219 people in Israel, has led to the deaths of over 62,000 Palestinians, most of them civilians, according to the Gaza Health Ministry, figures the UN considers reliable.
(With inputs from AFP)
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The News Desk is a team of passionate editors and writers who break and analyse the most important events unfolding in India and abroad. From live updates to exclusive reports to in-depth explainers, the Desk d… Read More
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