Kashif – Samaher Farhan
On 28 July 2025, the Israeli occupation government’s Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT), Ghassan Alian, posted photos on the “Coordinator” Facebook page showing plates of meat, fruits, and cake, claiming they were taken inside tunnels belonging to Hamas. This was an attempt to deny that the occupation is starving Gaza.
The caption reads:
“While they promote to the world the so-called ‘Starvation of Gaza’ campaign, the photos don’t lie – Hamas terrorists are whetting appetites underground.
The photos, taken in recent months inside the tunnel kitchen, show tender meat, fresh vegetables, boiled eggs, and a cake. Yes, a cake… because terrorist warfare isn’t complete without indulgence.
Hunger? Only on the screens and for propaganda purposes. On the ground – the tunnels are full of food, and the storage rooms are stocked for their families.
The poor in Gaza? Left to scavenge for crumbs. The terrorist organization steals the aid, fills its bellies, and then sheds crocodile tears in front of the cameras.
The real victim? The people of Gaza, used as fuel for a false campaign with the taste of cake and the scent of lies.”
The post included hashtags such as #Exclusive and #Hamas_Menu, along with sarcastic phrases like “Terrorist struggle isn’t complete without dessert.”
COGAT’s Facebook Post
To verify the Coordinator’s claims, we conducted the following steps:
First: Visual Verification of the Photos
Using reverse image search tools like Google Lens and TinEye, along with manual visual analysis of spatial indicators, we found that:
– The photos did not appear in any prior sources before COGAT’s post, suggesting they are either new or unpublished publicly.
– The images contain no definitive indicators proving the exact location, such as maps, military equipment, or identifiable individuals.
– The photos clearly show gray cement walls, supporting the possibility that they were taken inside an enclosed facility or tunnel. The light source appears to be artificial and direct, rather than natural, which supports the assumption that the photos were taken underground. However, this does not definitively prove the Coordinator’s claims.
Second: Nature of the Source and Propagandistic Style
The post originates from an official military body of the Israeli occupation and appears to be part of an effort to deny that the Israeli government is intentionally starving Gaza’s residents. It also employs sarcasm—a known propaganda technique—evident in phrases like “#Hamas_Menu” and “Terrorist warfare isn’t complete without indulgence,” and notably lacks any independent source to verify its claims.
Third: Likely Goals Behind the Claim
– To discredit the international human rights narrative regarding the starvation of Gaza’s population.
– To portray Hamas leadership as living in luxury while Israel is blamed for the collapse of food security.
Fourth: Contextual Verification – What Do Israeli Human Rights Reports Say?
The claim was compared against key Israeli human rights reports, most notably:
– “Our Genocide” by B’Tselem
– “A Health Analysis of the Gaza Genocide” by Physicians for Human Rights – Israel (PHRI)
The findings were as follows:
– Both reports document a collapse in food security in Gaza, including deaths caused by hunger and malnutrition.
– The PHRI report states that 92% of Gaza’s population suffers from severe food insecurity, and that 80% of hunger-related deaths are among children.
– Neither report includes any mention of luxury food being available in tunnels or elsewhere.
Amid growing reports from international organizations and widespread media coverage of the famine and malnutrition in Gaza, and the daily struggles of its people to obtain even the bare minimum of food, the occupation attempts through its platforms to deny its policy of starving the population, distract from its documented crimes, and shift the narrative from humanitarian suffering to political mockery.