Israel-Gaza updates: 22, including 18 children, reported dead in Rafah strikes

Following USAID Administrator Samantha Power acknowledging that famine is happening in northern Gaza, the White House was pressed Thursday on whether this could have been prevented if they had pressured Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu sooner to increase deliveries of humanitarian aid.

The U.S. has often called on Israel to open more crossings and allow for more aid to reach Gaza, but it wasn't until last week when President Joe Biden told Netanyahu that U.S. policy on Gaza hinges on Israel announcing and implementing measurable steps to address civilian harm, humanitarian suffering and the safety of aid workers.

"Every time the president has spoken to the prime minister there's -- part of that conversation has been to do more humanitarian aid," White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said when asked if it was a mistake not to push Netanyahu to open the Ashdod port and Erez crossing sooner to help prevent famine.

She was asked specifically who is to blame for famine in Gaza, but she didn't attribute it to anyone, instead saying the focus is going to be on getting aid in.

"The humanitarian situation in Gaza, obviously, is dire. And that is why the president is doing everything that he can to get more humanitarian aid in," she said. "And that's what our focus is going to be."

-ABC News' Justin R. Gomez

The State Department revealed that U.S. government employees and their family members are now prohibited from undertaking any personal travel in Israel outside of the greater Tel Aviv, Jerusalem and Be’er Sheva areas "until further notice."

The alert says the restrictions were imposed "out of an abundance of caution" and shared to help other Americans in Israel make their own security plans.

"In response to security incidents and without advance notice, the U.S. Embassy may further restrict or prohibit U.S. government employees and their family members from traveling to certain areas of Israel (including the Old City of Jerusalem) and the West Bank," the alert adds.

Asked whether the limitations were directly connected to Iran’s threats, State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller declined to speak to the specific assessments motivating the policy but acknowledged the public warnings from Iran and said Israel is in "a very tough neighborhood."

"Clearly we are monitoring the threat environment in the Middle East and specifically in Israel, and that's what led us to give that warning to our employees and their family members and to make it public so all U.S. citizens who either live in Israel or traveling there are aware of it," he said.

-ABC News' Shannon Crawford

Gen. Michael Erik Kurilla, the commander of U.S. Central Command, is set to meet with officials in Israel about Iran and the Joint logistics over-the-shore floating piers which U.S. military officials currently on the ground in Israel have been working to coordinate with Israeli military officials, an Israeli official told ABC News.

The official said there has been a "marathon of calls" between Israel’s Defense Minister Yoav Gallant and the National Security Council, the State Department and the Pentagon, which the official credits with increasing statements of support by the administration for Israel in case it’s attacked by Iran. Those talks were an extension of the meetings two weeks ago when the White House summoned Israeli officials to Washington to discuss the urgent need to increase humanitarian aid in Gaza.

After months of U.S. calls for Israel to massively increase aid, multiple Israeli security officials tell ABC News that Israel heard the message loud and clear this time.

"We heard what they said about the humanitarian effort," the official told ABC News, noting Gallant came back from his trip to the U.S. and gave a "directive: 'We need to make an immediate impact on the scope and speed of the humanitarian aid going into Gaza,' and that's what we've done."

-ABC News' Matt Gutman

U.S. officials are skeptical that Hamas is holding enough Israeli hostages to meet the requirements for the first phase of the proposed deal currently on the table, according to a source familiar with the negotiations.

The proposal calls for Hamas to hand over 40 hostages who are either: children; women not affiliated with the Israel Defense Forces; sick adults; or adults over 50 years old, according to the officials.

In exchange, Israel would free an undefined number of Palestinian prisoners and implement a cease-fire of at least six weeks.

-ABC News’ Shannon Crawford