US ‘appalled’ by Smotrich’s remarks on starving Gaza’s population

Occupied Palestine (Quds News Network)- Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich’s remarks on Monday suggesting that starving the entire population of Gaza might be “justified and moral” in order to release the Israeli prisoners has “appalled” the US administration.

“We are appalled by these comments and reiterate that this rhetoric is harmful and disturbing,” a State Department spokesperson said in a statement to The Times of Israel.

The statement added that US President Joe Biden and US Secretary of State Antony Blinken have repeatedly stressed “the need to end the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, remove any obstacles to the flow of aid and restore basic services for those in need”.

Speaking at a conference hosted by the Israel Hayom outlet on Monday, Smotrich expressed support for blocking aid to the Gaza Strip but said Israel lacked international legitimacy to do so.
“We are bringing in aid because there is no choice,” the far-right minister said.

“We can’t, in the current global reality, manage a war. Nobody will let us cause two million civilians to die of hunger even though it might be justified and moral until our hostages are returned,” he added.
He said that Israel needed “international legitimacy for this war”.

For about 10 months, the Israeli occupation has imposed a tight siege on the Gaza Strip, extremely limiting the flow of life-saving essential food and medical items.

In June, independent UN investigators said Israel was using starvation on the Palestinian population as a weapon of war. The hunger crisis has led to the death of dozens of people due to malnutrition, mostly children.