Josh Shapiro calls Netanyahu’s denial of starvation ‘abhorrent’, urges Trump to ‘flood the zone’ With Gaza aid
The Jewish Democrat criticized both Hamas and Israel’s leadership while calling for a hostage release and an urgent humanitarian response
Pennsylvanian Gov. Josh Shapiro on July 31. Photo by Office of Gov. Josh Shapiro/Commonwealth Media
By Jacob Kornbluh August 5, 2025
Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro called Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s rejection of international hunger reports “abhorrent” and “wrong,” a signal of how far Israel’s government has drifted from the Jewish Democratic establishment Shapiro exemplifies.
Shapiro, speaking Tuesday at a press conference in Lancaster, has been a prominent critic of pro-Palestinian protesters since the October 7, 2023 Hamas attacks and the subsequent war in Gaza.
It was “quite abhorrent what Prime Minister Netanyahu said roughly a week or so ago when he said, ‘there is no starvation in Gaza.’ He is wrong,” Shapiro said. “I think the rhetoric coming from Prime Minister Netanyahu only creates less stability and security for Israel.”
Shapiro’s accusation that Netanyahu is further isolating Israel’s standing in the international community come as more mainstream Democrats who once avoided public criticism of Israeli policy are now speaking out amid the worsening starvation crisis.
The remarks by Shapiro, who is perhaps the party’s most recognizable Jewish leader — his Shabbat observance was a feature of his 2022 campaign, and he routinely quotes Jewish scripture — suggests how deep the tensions run between Democrats and Israel’s government, extending to the party’s Jewish establishment.
Shapiro acknowledged Israeli and U.S. claims that Hamas has been stealing humanitarian aid sent into the enclave.
The solution, he said, was for the Trump administration to “flood the zone with aid.”
“The fact that kids are starving in Gaza is not okay,” Shapiro said. “And I think everyone has a moral responsibility to figure out how to feed these kids.”
Shapiro has come under fire from progressive Democrats for his staunch defense of Israel, his refusal to call for a unilateral ceasefire in Gaza, and for highlighting expressions of antisemitism at the nationwide pro-Palestinian protests.
His Israel positions reportedly raised concerns within the Kamala Harris presidential campaign when he was vetted for a vice presidential pick, but it was not why he didn’t get the job.
In his remarks on Tuesday, Shapiro called for Hamas to release the remaining 50 hostages believed to still be in Gaza while urging the U.S. to dramatically increase humanitarian aid. “Those feelings are not mutually exclusive,” he said.
Shapiro suggests that after the Trump admin directly negotiating with Hamas about the hostages, Trump “damn well better be on the phone with Hamas trying to figure out how to get aid in there to the starving people, and not have Hamas intercept it.”
— Jacob N. Kornbluh (@jacobkornbluh) August 5, 2025
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He noted that the Trump administration broke with longstanding U.S. policy and engaged in direct talks with Hamas earlier this year to secure the release of American hostages. Now that President Donald Trump broke the taboo, Trump should “damn well better be on the phone with Hamas trying to figure out how to get aid in there to the starving people, and not have Hamas intercept it,” Shapiro said.
