While Gaza suffers under one of the most brutal sieges in modern history—marked by starvation, mass death, and military blockade—Arab states that have normalised ties with Israel have been shipping hundreds of tonnes of food to the occupying power.
Official Israeli trade data, analysed by Arabi Post, reveals that in June 2025, countries such as the UAE, Egypt, Jordan, Morocco, and Bahrain exported a wide variety of food products to Israel. This happened precisely when Israel was tightening its stranglehold on the 2.1 million Palestinians trapped in Gaza, pushing the entire population into an accelerating famine.
That same month, signs of severe malnutrition and widespread starvation began to appear across Gaza, escalating further through July 2025 as Israel continued to obstruct humanitarian aid. Images and videos emerged showing skeletal children and emaciated elderly civilians, even as Israel ignored international warnings about the unfolding catastrophe.
What the Numbers Show
According to Israel’s Central Bureau of Statistics, the total value of Arab food exports to Israel in June 2025 alone reached $8.16 million. These were part of broader exports worth $116.4 million, covering both food and non-food items such as machinery, textiles, medical devices, and steel products.
A breakdown of 76 distinct food categories exported by Arab states to Israel reveals key items such as:
- Vegetables and fruits
- Grains and cereals
- Fish and seafood
- Beverages, sugars, and sweeteners
- Coffee, tea, and spices
These items are catalogued by the Harmonised System (HS Code), used by customs authorities globally, enabling precise identification of traded goods between Arab normalisation states and Israel.
Top Exporters of Food to Israel (June 2025)
1. Egypt
- Exported $3.8 million worth of food products
- Included:
- Grains and flour products
- Vegetables and fruit derivatives
- Coffee, tea, and spices
- Sugar and confectionery
- Notably, Egypt exported $2.6 million in fruits and vegetables alone
2. Morocco
- Exported $2.5 million in food
- Leading category: Sugars and sweets, valued at $1.7 million
3. UAE
- Exported $1.04 million in food products, including fish, vegetables, and even live animals
4. Jordan
- Exported $672,000 worth of food to Israel
5. Bahrain
- Exported $47,000 in food products
Jordanian Vegetable Shipments: A Closer Look
According to Israel’s Ministry of Agriculture, between June 3 and July 21, 2025, Israel received:
- 695 tonnes of tomatoes
- 96.5 tonnes of peppers
Total: 791 tonnes of vegetables from Jordan
Despite Jordanian government announcements in 2024 about suspending exports over alleged cholera contamination in irrigation water (a claim Amman denied), food shipments continued. Jordan’s Agriculture Minister Khaled Hneifat admitted in a January 2024 interview that the government had no legal authority to prevent private exporters from selling to Israel, urging them instead to “show some moral responsibility.”
UN Confirms Gaza Is Starving
While Arab produce flowed into Israeli markets, multiple UN agencies sounded the alarm:
- On June 11, 2025, UN Deputy Spokesman Farhan Haq warned Gaza was facing imminent famine
- On June 12, UN Under-Secretary-General Tom Fletcher echoed the warning
- By July 29, the World Food Programme reported that acute malnutrition among children in Gaza had quadrupled in two months
UN data shows:
- Over 500,000 people in Gaza are enduring famine-like conditions
- Over one-third of Gaza’s population goes multiple days without food
- Gaza is universally classified as experiencing catastrophic food insecurity
Death by Hunger and Aid Looting
According to the Palestinian Ministry of Health, by July 30, 2025, at least 154 Palestinians had died directly due to Israel’s starvation policy, including 89 children.
But hunger is not the only killer.
In Gaza, desperate civilians have also died while trying to retrieve humanitarian aid, delivered through a controversial U.S.-backed mechanism involving “Gaza Humanitarian Foundation” drop points controlled by former American military personnel and overseen with Israeli approval.
On July 31, 2025, Palestinian health authorities reported that 1,330 people had been killed while attempting to access these aid sites.
Arab Governments Face Growing Public Outrage
The revelations of continued trade between Arab states and Israel during the Gaza famine have sparked public backlash. Activists and civil society groups across the Arab world have called for an immediate halt to commercial dealings with the occupation.
Egypt has been repeatedly criticised for allegedly delaying aid at the Rafah crossing. Cairo, however, blames Israel for blocking shipments and claims it is working to deliver “as much aid as possible.”
On July 30, 2025, Egypt, Jordan, and the UAE staged joint airdrop operations of humanitarian aid into Gaza. But the UNRWA has stated that such efforts are insufficient and “will not stop the famine.”
Conclusion: Food for the Occupier, Famine for the Besieged
Since October 7, 2023, Israel has waged a genocidal war on Gaza—marked by mass killing, starvation, destruction, and displacement—ignoring all international calls and defying International Court of Justice (ICJ) orders to cease.
As of July 2025, the war has left:
- Over 206,000 Palestinians killed or injured, mostly women and children
- More than 9,000 still missing
- Hundreds of thousands displaced
- A famine killing even the youngest and most vulnerable
In this context, the continued export of food from Arab countries to Israel is not just a moral scandal—it is a direct betrayal of Palestine and a participation in the siege.
Absolutely sickening and cruel