President Trump is keeping his foreign policy focus on Russia and Ukraine as global outrage grows over Israel's plans to launch a major new offensive in the Gaza Strip and a declaration of famine on Friday that underscored the catastrophic suffering of Palestinians.

Trump has backed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s decision to launch a major offensive to take over the strip’s capital, Gaza City, even as he had earlier expressed concern over “starving” Palestinians and discussed the U.S. taking control of the main food distribution effort.

Aid groups are pleading with the U.S. to exercise its influence to help alleviate the humanitarian crisis, where more than half a million people face starvation. And Israelis advocating for a ceasefire deal to secure the release of at least 20 living and 30 deceased hostages are begging for Trump to turn his attention to the Middle East.

“You have spoken powerfully about ending wars and bringing peace. As you work to resolve the conflict in Ukraine, we pray you will apply that same determination to end this nightmare in Gaza,” the Hostages and Missing Families Forum, which represents many families of captives in Gaza, wrote an open letter to Trump this week.

But Trump’s top envoy for peace, Steve Witkoff, has not signaled a return to talks that he left in late July, saying at the time that Hamas is the obstacle to peace.

The White House did not return a request for comment on the current level of U.S. involvement in the ceasefire talks.

Witkoff, currently tasked with settling Russia’s war in Ukraine, is “spread far too thin,” said Daniel Shapiro, distinguished fellow with the Atlantic Council’s Scowcroft Middle East Security Initiative.

Shapiro, who also served as U.S. ambassador to Israel under former President Obama, said that Trump needs to appoint a full-time senior envoy specifically to deal with the Israel-Hamas war.

“If an all-out Israeli assault on Gaza........

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