Trump says many are starving in Gaza, vows to set up food centres

US President Donald Trump said on Monday many people were starving in Gaza and suggested Israel could do more on humanitarian access, as Palestinians struggled to feed their children a day after Israel declared steps to improve supplies.

As the death toll from two years of war in Gaza nears 60,000, a growing number of people are dying from starvation and malnutrition, Gaza health authorities say, with images of starving children shocking the world and fuelling international criticism of Israel over sharply worsening conditions.

Describing starvation in Gaza as real, Trump's assessment put him at odds with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who said on Sunday "there is no starvation in Gaza" and vowed to fight on against Hamas - a statement he reposted on X on Monday.

However, Netanyahu later on Monday described the situation in Gaza as "difficult", saying his country was working to ensure aid delivery to the besieged strip. "Israel will continue to work with international agencies as well as the US and European nations to ensure that large amounts of humanitarian aid flows into the Gaza Strip," Netanyahu said, according to a statement from his office.

Trump, speaking during a visit to Scotland, said Israel has a lot of responsibility for aid flows, and that a lot of people could be saved. "You have a lot of starving people," he said.

"We're going to set up food centres," with no fences or boundaries to ease access, Trump said. The US would work with other countries to provide more humanitarian assistance to the people of Gaza, including food and sanitation, he said.

A White House spokesperson said additional details on the food centres would be "forthcoming".

On Monday, the Gaza health ministry said at least 14 people had died in the past 24 hours of starvation and malnutrition, bringing the war's death toll from hunger to 147, including 88 children, most in just the last few weeks.

Israel announced several measures over the weekend, including daily humanitarian pauses to fighting in three areas of Gaza, new safe corridors for aid convoys, and airdrops. The decision followed the collapse of ceasefire talks on Friday.

Two Israeli defence officials said the international pressure prompted the new Israeli measures, as did the worsening conditions on the ground.

UN agencies said a long-term and steady supply of aid was needed. The World Food Programme said 60 trucks of aid had been dispatched - short of target. Almost 470,000 people in Gaza are enduring famine-like conditions, with 90,000 women and children in need of specialist nutrition treatments, it said.