'Are You Pushing The Israeli Government?': Reporters Grill State Department Spokesperson Over Gaza Aid

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During a State Department Spokesperson Tommy Pigott was asked about the US role in aid distribution in Gaza.

Transcript

00:00Yeah, just to follow on what everyone is asking about, you say you want to see aid get into Gaza.

00:06Are you pushing the Israeli government to allow other groups into Gaza to distribute aid?

00:10Today, GHF was the only one allowed into the Strip.

00:13What we're pushing for is for other countries to join us in supporting the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation's work.

00:18But there are other groups who had been established and had methods that were able to distribute more widely

00:22before the restrictions of the Israeli government. So are you asking them to also lift these restrictions?

00:26What we're pushing for is for other countries to support the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation's work,

00:30the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation being able to deliver that aid without it being looted by Hamas.

00:35And again, that's about that creative solution that President Trump has said from the beginning.

00:38So we call on other countries to support the GHF in this. Yes.

00:44Just a follow-up. I mean, I'm sure that 46 million meals are very good, and the Palestinians appreciate that.

00:50But that, as Andrea said, that translates to about 20 meals per person over, you know, a period of a month,

00:57because it's been a month since they started this thing.

01:00So there are only like four centers.

01:03So are there any plans to expand these centers to make more openings, more entry points and so on for aid

01:11and all these things?

01:12Because Gaza used to receive, you know, a thousand, maybe a couple thousand trucks of food a day.

01:18So the situation is very dire.

01:20So I don't have anything to preview in terms of future plans here.

01:23I'm not going to get into that here.

01:24I can say what we've seen in the past is distribution sites opening.

01:28We've seen a ramp up of the meals being delivered.

01:30And I think, again, the story here is 46 million meals being delivered to the people of Gaza.

01:35That is the story here.

01:36Right. Right.

01:37If I may follow up.

01:39One more.

01:39If I may follow up very, very quickly.

01:41Yeah.

01:41But, you know, also it has been, you know, a death trap.

01:44I mean, everybody is documenting that.

01:46Palestinians are being killed.

01:48At these centers and so on.

01:49Many of them are afraid to go.

01:52You know, there's a looming disaster.

01:54I mean, are you talking to the Israelis?

01:57Are you urging them not, you know, not to be trigger happy and confronting very hungry people

02:04who are, you know, are so desperate that they're probably grabbing stuff and so on?

02:08Well, I answered your question earlier, but I think it's also important to recognize that

02:11Hamas bears sole responsibility for this conflict.

02:13As has been stated from this podium several times by spokesperson Timmy Bruce, the fact

02:18that we're seeing Hamas act in certain ways and really in barbaric ways, that they've

02:24continually done that.

02:25So Hamas bears sole responsibility for this conflict.

02:27And again, the story here is the 46 million meals that have been able to be distributed to the

02:32people in Gaza during this time and the fact that we're encouraging other countries to also

02:37support the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation.

02:38I think that's the mission.

02:43I mean, I think that's the question.

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