Prime Minister Netanyahu met United Nations World Food Programme executive director Cindy McCain in Jerusalem for a “constructive meeting concerning the ongoing and continued provision of humanitarian aid to Gazan civilians,” they announced in a joint statement Thursday, as she warned Gaza was “at breaking point.”

The meeting came days after the global hunger monitor Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) declared for the first time that famine has struck the densely populated northern Gaza Strip. After visiting Gaza earlier this week, McCain also met Wednesday with IDF chief Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir, Foreign Ministry director-general Eden Bar Tal and COGAT chief Maj. Gen. Ghassan Alian, as well as with Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Mohammad Mustafa in Ramallah on Thursday.

Netanyahu and McCain discussed “the importance of protecting civilians from hunger and malnutrition and ensuring that their basic essential needs are met” and noted the increase in aid entering Gaza over the past month.

According to their statement, Netanyahu and McCain agreed to “redouble efforts to expedite and sustain the entry of humanitarian goods into Gaza given the dire needs on the ground.”

They also agreed that, wherever possible, aid must reach “the most vulnerable people where they are.” The language of the joint statement seemed to indicate an impending reform to the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) model, which sees Palestinians walk several kilometers in dangerous conditions to receive aid.

The IDF said this week it was opening two new GHF sites in southern Gaza and closing one. US Ambassador Mike Huckabee said earlier this month that plans were in place for GHF to expand operations to 16 sites, with overcrowding a constant issue at existing centers.

Netanyahu and McCain also........

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