Famine in Northern Gaza, Epstein Docs, CA/TX Maps

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🗓️ 22 August 2025

⏱️ 15 minutes

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Summary

A UN-backed panel of experts says there is famine in northern Gaza, the Justice Department is expected to deliver a first batch of files from its Jeffrey Epstein investigation to the House Oversight Committee and California Governor Gavin Newsom signed a California redistricting plan today to counter Texas Republicans.

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Transcript

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0:00.0	For the first time, famine has officially been declared in northern Gaza.
0:06.4	Israel is accused by human rights organizations of using food as a weapon of war.
0:11.2	Will this declaration change the trajectory of its offensive in Gaza and the military's plan to seize Gaza City?
0:16.7	I'm Michelle Martin. That's Leila Fadol, and this is up first from NPR News.
0:22.1	The House Oversight Committee is getting some of Jeffrey Epstein's Justice Department files today.
0:27.0	We're going to be transparent. We're doing what we said we would do. We're getting the documents.
0:31.4	The Republican chair says some of those documents will be made public eventually, but will that be enough to satisfy Trump supporters?
0:38.4	And California Democrats pushed through a redistricting plan that could get them more House seats.
0:43.5	We have a lot more work to do. Get this done in November 4th.
0:47.1	Will California voters approve it? Stay with us. We'll give you the news you need to start your day.
1:07.6	A UN-backed panel of experts on starvation has declared that northern Gaza is in a full-blown famine,
1:12.7	with half a million people facing, quote, catastrophic conditions. This comes after almost two years of war and Israeli limitations on aid entering the territory. For two and a half
1:17.4	months, it blockaded all aid. Israel blames the food crisis on Hamas, which it accuses of
1:22.7	hijacking aid. No evidence has been presented publicly to show that aid groups have also told NPR they haven't seen that systemic theft.
1:30.3	Today's declaration, according to one leading aid group, is the first time a famine has ever been declared in the Middle East.
1:36.3	With us to talk about this is NPR's International Affairs correspondent, Jackie Northam, in Tel Aviv.
1:42.3	Good morning, Jackie.
1:43.3	Morning, Lel. Okay, so this expert
1:45.4	panel is saying for the first time that northern Gaza is in the grip of famine. What did they find?
1:52.1	Well, the integrated food security phase classification or the IPC is an international panel of
1:58.6	independent experts on food scarcity, and it informs the UN on
2:02.7	food insecurity and malnutrition. And they've been watching the worsening crisis in Gaza for many
	...

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