Trump's envoy visits Israel as Gaza hunger crisis worsens and negotiations stall

US President Donald Trump's envoy, Steve Witkoff, met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday to discuss the Israeli war on Gaza and the status of negotiations for a deal that would include a ceasefire and the release of Israeli prisoners, amid an unprecedented worsening of the famine crisis imposed by Israel on Gaza in this century.

Trump, Witkoff, and Netanyahu blamed "Hamas' intransigence" for the stalemate in the talks brokered by the United States, Qatar, and Egypt. According to US reports, the US envoy is expected to pressure Netanyahu to make concessions in the hope of putting the negotiations back on track.

After withdrawing their negotiators from talks in Qatar last week, Trump and Netanyahu vowed to explore new ways to return the 50 hostages still being held in Gaza, 20 of whom are believed to be still alive.

Among the possible options on the table is the annexation of parts of the devastated and devastated Gaza Strip, a move Israel claims President Trump has given the green light for, but one that would be difficult to reverse in the future. Under Israeli law, withdrawal from officially annexed territories requires either the support of 80 members of the Knesset or a national referendum, according to Israeli media.

According to the Hebrew news website Ynet, Witkoff is expected to make a rare visit to Gaza during his visit, and will visit aid distribution sites run by the US- and Israeli-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), which has been accused of using its four centers to kill Palestinians seeking aid.

It should be noted that this is Witkoff's second visit to Gaza this year, following his visit to the Netzarim Corridor area in the Strip in late January (following the start of the ceasefire that Netanyahu violated on March 18). He thus becomes the highest-ranking US official to visit the Strip in more than a decade.

Israel banned all aid from entering the Gaza Strip on March 2, and began allowing in a trickle of aid at the end of May, relying heavily on the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), a global relief fund established to help starving Palestinians in Gaza. Israel has succeeded in doing so.

GHF sites have witnessed daily incidents in which Israeli occupation forces (IOF) soldiers opened fire on civilians in Gaza. The IDF justified this by claiming it was necessary to use force to control crowds. The Ministry of Health in Gaza says more than 1,000 people have been killed near GHF sites, while Israel claims the number is exaggerated.

On Thursday, President Trump delivered a stern message via Truth Social regarding Hamas and the remaining hostages to the escalating crisis in Gaza.

The US President wrote: "The fastest way to end the humanitarian crisis in Gaza is for Hamas to surrender and release the hostages!!!"

Trump's post marks a subtle shift in his message regarding the war and the humanitarian situation in Gaza. Recently, Trump appeared to hold Israel responsible, acknowledging that there was "real famine in Gaza," marking a rare break with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who delivered the exact opposite message.

Meanwhile, Trump said on Thursday that in order to end the ongoing hunger in Gaza, "the terrorist group Hamas must surrender and release the 50 hostages it is holding, 49 of whom were taken during the October 7, 2023, massacre that sparked the war in Gaza."