or Teams to make calls.

Most community kitchens have shut down. The main food providers inside Gaza — the U.N.’s World Food Program and World Central Kitchen — say they are out of food. Vegetables and meat are inaccessible or unaffordable. Crowds line up for hours for a small scoop of rice.Food security experts said last week that Gaza would likely fall into famine if Israel doesn’t lift

Nearly 500,000 Palestinians— living in “catastrophic” levels of hunger — and 1 million others can barely get enough food, according to the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification, a leading international authority on the severity of hunger crises.Satellite photos obtained by The Associated Press show what appear to be Israeli preparations for the new aid distribution program. The photos from May 10 show four bases in southern Gaza.

— made up of American security contractors, former government officials, ex-military officers and humanitarian officials — says it would initially set up four distribution sites, guarded by private security firms. Each would serve 300,000 people, covering only about half of Gaza’s population.The proposal said subcontractors will use armored vehicles to transport supplies from the Gaza border to distribution sites, where they will also provide security. It said the aim is to deter criminal gangs or militants from redirecting aid.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed to use even greater force to achieve the two main war aims of returning all the hostages and dismantling Hamas.

Hamas abducted 251 hostages in the 2023 attack and killed around 1,200 people, mostly civilians. The militant group is still holding 58 hostages, around a third believed to be alive, after releasing most of the rest in ceasefire agreements or other deals.Read more of AP’s climate coverage at

Follow Seth Borenstein on X atThe Associated Press’ climate and environmental coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP’s

for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas atLOS ANGELES (AP) — Celebrated actor Valerie Mahaffey, whose stage, film and television work ranged from Shakespeare to the hit 1990s series “Northern Exposure,” died at age 71 after a battle with cancer, according to a statement released Saturday by her publicist.