FLASH
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US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin has said there is no evidence that Israel is committing genocide in the Gaza Strip in its war against the Palestinian group Hamas.
"We have no evidence of that," Austin told the Armed Services Committee, adding that "a mass famine in the Gaza Strip would likely precipitate violence and certainly lead to a protracted conflict."
Six months after the start of Israel's military operation in Gaza, the devastated Palestinian enclave is grappling with hunger and disease, and almost all residents are now homeless. Aid agencies complain that Israel is not providing access to food, medicine and other essentials, while EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell accused the Israeli government of using hunger as a weapon.
Hamas' attack in southern Israel on October 7 killed about 1,200 people, according to Israeli figures. Israel's subsequent military offensive in the Gaza Strip has displaced almost the enclave's entire population of 2.3 million, prompting accusations of genocide, which Israel denies.
The US is Israel's biggest military backer, but has pressed the Israeli government to do more to help civilians in Gaza.
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