Negotiations between Israel and Hamas on a deal for Gaza ceasefire and return of hostages appeared to have stalled Saturday as the United Nations warned that people in the besieged Palestinian territory faced an unprecedented hunger crisis.
Negotiators in the Qatari capital Doha were deadlocked over two major issues including withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza and aid distribution through obscure Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, several American and Middle Eastern media outlets reports said.
President Donald Trump‘s administration expected an agreement on ceasefire and return of Israeli hostages by this weekend as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visited Washington.
The United States has proposed a 60-day ceasefire during which Palestinian militant organization Hamas would release living hostages.
The United States, Egypt and Qatar have facilitated the talks between Israeli government representatives and Hamas negotiators. The two have negotiated eight rounds of what have been described as indirect “proximity” talks, which took place with the two sides housed in different buildings.
Meanwhile, a senior official of the World Food Program, a Rome-based UN agency, warned that the hunger crisis in Gaza had reached an unprecedented level, with humanitarian efforts crippled by the Israeli blockade of the enclave.
“The situation is worse than I’ve ever seen it before,” said Carl Skau, WFP’s deputy executive director, said.
Speaking at a news conference at the UN headquarters in New York after his fourth visit to war-hit Gaza, Skau said the “humanitarian needs have never been higher.”
Trump sees ‘great progress’ on Gaza, raising hopes for ceasefire
He noted that the UN’s “ability to respond and to assist has never been more constrained.”
“The fact that people are now dying every day trying to get food, I think is the starkest illustration of how desperate the situation is,” said Skau.
Food experts have been warning for weeks that the entire Gaza population, some two million people, is acutely food insecure and half a million are on the brink.
“If anything, it’s much worse now,” said Skau, who was in Gaza City, Deir Al-Balah and Khan Younis last week.
Meanwhile, UNICEF reported that malnutrition is also surging in Gaza.
#GAZA: “it’s worse than I’ve ever seen before.”
Starvation is spreading. What we really need is the ceasefire.”On Friday, WFP’s @CarlSkau, briefed journalists about his latest visit to Gaza. @UN_Spokesperson
Listen ⤵️#Ceasefire pic.twitter.com/wlUssxz47B
— WFP Media (@WFP_Media) July 12, 2025
Some 90,000 children are in urgent need of treatment, the world body’s child rights agency said.
Regarding his talks with Israel, Skau said, “I sense the recognition that conditions need to improve.”
“It was also recognized that the UN has a key role to play,” he added.
“It was very clear in my engagement that they want the UN to continue to be the main track in delivery.
Aid trucks wait for Israeli permission to enter Gaza with life-saving supplies
“And, certainly, should there be a ceasefire, the indications were that they would want us to be ready to scale up and do what we did last time when we on Day One were ready to bring 600 trucks into Gaza.”
In recent weeks, the United Nations reported, hundreds of Palestinians have been killed in Israeli firing on the aid distribution sites run by Gaza Humanitarian Foundation.
The conditions in Gaza Strip have deteriorated for months as a result of attacks, displacement of people and lack of aid supply due to blockade.
The Gaza war erupted on October 7, 2023, when Hamas, which the U.S. designated as a terrorist organization, attacked southern Israeli, and kidnapped around 250 people as hostages. According to Israeli officials 1200 people were killed in Hamas the attack.
Israel retaliated with large-scale military attacks on Gaza, saying it would eliminate Hamas. According to Gaza health officials, more than 57,000 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli bombings including a large number of children and women.
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