The Famine in Gaza Is a Choice

And the US is complicit.

The humanitarian crisis in Gaza is getting worse.

By now, you’ve likely seen the headlines: mass starvation, children dying from malnutrition, aid trucks sitting idle at border crossings while families go hungry.

• 154 people have died from starvation or severe malnutrition this year, including 89 children.

• In July alone, the World Health Organization recorded 63 malnutrition-related deaths, including 25 children under five.

• In Gaza City, 1 in 5 children under five is acutely malnourished.

• Over 1,060 people have been killed and more than 7,200 injured trying to reach food.

• The UN estimates Gaza needs 500–600 trucks of aid daily. Fewer than 300 are getting in.

• And these numbers are likely undercounts—there’s no independent press, no international monitors allowed inside.

Now, even Israeli voices are breaking rank.

Two leading human rights groups, B’Tselem and Physicians for Human Rights–Israel, have called what’s happening in Gaza a genocide.

Let’s be clear: this is not a natural disaster. It’s not caused by drought or economic collapse. This is the result of deliberate policy choices. And the United States is complicit.

The decisions that led to this famine.

In March, the Israeli government imposed a total blockade on Gaza. No food. No fuel. No humanitarian aid. For three months, nothing was allowed in.

The stated goal? Pressure Hamas during hostage negotiations.

By the time limited aid began to trickle through, Gaza’s food system had already collapsed.

Then Israel and the U.S. made it worse.

Instead of allowing the UN and other experienced humanitarian groups to distribute aid, Israel created a new, politically connected organization: the Gaza Humanitarian Fund (GHF).

Who runs it? Johnnie Moore, a close Trump ally with no humanitarian aid experience.

When GHF took over, the number of aid distribution sites in Gaza plummeted from 400 to just four. All are located in southern Gaza, under full Israeli military control, and miles away from the areas suffering the worst famine.

To reach food, people must walk through active war zones. Many don’t survive the journey.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu blames Hamas for diverting aid. Donald Trump has repeated this claim.

It is a lie.

This famine is the direct result of decisions made by the Israeli government and enabled by the United States. It continues because of inaction, indifference, and delay.

My Thoughts

This issue is personal to me, as I know it is for many of you.

I’m both American and Jewish. My ancestors fled violent antisemitism in Europe. Some played roles in supporting the founding of Israel in the 1940s.

I remember my great-grandfather spitting at the mention of President Roosevelt, furious over his refusal to accept Jewish refugees aboard the MS St. Louis.

The phrase “Never Again” was etched into my childhood.

I also grew up in a deeply progressive, justice-rooted home. My grandfather opened the first interracial medical practice on the south side of Chicago. My parents are lifelong community organizers. Their work is driven by the Jewish principle of Tikkun Olam—repairing the world.

I understand the value of a Jewish state and dream of one that reflects our values: democratic, moral, and righteous. I fear this dream is over.

Mass starvation, either through incompetence or as a strategy of war, has no justification. It is a genocide.

Over the past few days, I’ve listened. I’ve read. I’ve tried to understand every side of this debate. I’ve heard Democratic politicians like Elissa Slotkin and Cory Booker condemn Israel’s actions... and then vote to continue to arm them. In the face of emaciated children, this contradiction is unacceptable. Neutrality benefits the oppressor every time.

We can disagree about Hamas’s ability to end this war simply by releasing the hostages. We can argue about the past, about October 7, about how we got here.

But we cannot disagree about starving children. If you are unwilling to take drastic measures to reverse course, we are not on the same side.

What Now?

The United States must stop arming Israel. Full stop.

Our government acts as Netanyahu’s lawyer at the UN and his weapons supplier in the war. That protection is what allows this horror to continue.

I don’t say this lightly. But today, you cannot stand with Israel and stand for moral righteousness. Not right now.

Politicians, especially Democrats in the Senate, should take heed. The tides are changing. History and your future political ambitions will judge where you stand in this moment.

And frankly, if you care about Israel, if you care about the safety of Jewish people, you should be outraged because the Israeli government’s actions in Gaza are putting all of that at risk.

It hasn’t always been this way. And it doesn’t have to stay this way. But until food flows freely into Gaza, until the killing and starvation stop, my dream of a democratic, moral, and righteous Israel is dead.