US President Donald Trump said on Monday that his administration would help deliver food to "starving" Gazans amid an Israeli blockade that has lasted more than two months, but added that Hamas had made that "impossible" by diverting humanitarian aid to its fighters.

"We're going to help the people of Gaza get some food. People are starving, and we're going to help them get some food," Trump told reporters during a White House event.

Israeli officials have so far claimed that Gazans have not yet reached the point of starvation, and that enough aid entered the Strip during the six-week ceasefire to sustain the territory for a long time, although they have also argued without evidence—like Trump—that Hamas has been stealing the aid.

Data and testimonies from inside the Strip indicate a worsening hunger crisis and rising malnutrition rates, while Israel is working to implement a new system for distributing aid in a way it hopes will prevent Hamas from diverting it. International aid organizations briefed on the initiative announced Sunday that they would not cooperate with it, arguing that it does not adequately address the humanitarian crisis. Trump continued, "A lot of people are making it worse. Hamas is making it worse because they seize everything that comes in." The president added that Palestinians in Gaza are "treated very badly by Hamas."

An Israeli Defense Ministry official stated on Monday that plans for a major offensive against Hamas, if no hostage deal is reached with the movement by the end of Trump's visit to the region next week, include transferring Palestinian civilians to the southern Gaza Strip, attacking Hamas, and preventing the movement from controlling humanitarian aid supplies.

The official added that the "blockade" on the entry of humanitarian aid would continue, and "a humanitarian plan will only be implemented later, after the start of military operations and the large-scale evacuation of residents to the south." He said the plan involves designating an area in Rafah in southern Gaza—south of the Israeli-controlled Morag corridor—for the IDF to secure while civilian companies distribute aid to Palestinian civilians. The official added that those entering the "sterile area" in Rafah would undergo security screening by the IDF to prevent Hamas from receiving the aid.

This sweeping overhaul of the aid delivery system, approved by the cabinet on Sunday evening and first reported by The Times of Israel on Friday, will require the IDF to shift away from bulk distribution and warehousing of aid, and instead have food boxes distributed to individual Gaza families by international organizations and private security companies.

According to Israeli and Arab officials familiar with the matter, the Israel Defense Forces will not be directly involved in distributing the aid, amid opposition from Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir, but troops will be tasked with providing an external layer of security for private contractors and international organizations distributing the aid. The officials said Israel believes this approach will make it harder for Hamas to divert aid to its fighters. The United Nations announced in a statement Sunday that it would not participate in the plan as presented, considering it violates its core principles. According to a memo from the defense body responsible for coordinating aid to Gaza, COGAT, seen by The Associated Press, all aid will enter Gaza through the Kerem Shalom crossing, aboard about 60 trucks per day, and will be distributed directly to those in need. About 500 trucks entered Gaza daily before the war.

The memo stated that facial recognition technology will be used to identify Palestinians at logistics centers, and text message alerts will be sent to inform residents of the possibility of receiving aid.

The email, sent Monday by the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs to aid organizations and shared with The Associated Press, noted that mechanisms are in place to ensure aid is not diverted.

Earlier, the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said in a statement that the plan would leave large segments of the population, including the most vulnerable, without supplies. It added that the plan "appears designed to strengthen control over essential commodities as a pressure tactic—as part of a military strategy."

The head of the Norwegian Refugee Council told AFP on Monday that the plan to seize control of humanitarian aid distribution to Gaza "fundamentally contradicts humanitarian principles."

"UN agencies, all other international humanitarian organizations, and NGOs refused to participate in this idea issued by the Israeli cabinet and the Israeli military," he said.

Egeland said the Israeli government wanted to "militarize, manipulate, and politicize aid by allowing it to reach a few collection centers in the south, a system where people are screened, and it's completely broken." He added, "This will force people to flee to get aid and will continue to starve the civilian population," emphasizing, "We have no role in that." He emphasized, "If one side in a bitter armed conflict tries to control, manipulate, and ration aid among civilians on the other side, that goes against everything we believe in."

Egeland added that the Israeli government wants to "militarize, manipulate, and politicize aid by only allowing aid to reach a few detention centers in the south, a system where people are screened, a system that is completely broken."

"This will force people to flee in search of aid and will lead to the continued starvation of the civilian population," he said, adding, "We will have no role in this."