Gaza City: UN-backed experts have issued a grave warning that a famine of unprecedented scale is unfolding in Gaza, with the situation becoming irreversible unless humanitarian organizations are granted immediate and unhindered access to the territory.
According to Nam News Network, the alarming announcement coincided with reports from health authorities in the Hamas-controlled region, stating that over 60,000 people have lost their lives due to Israel’s prolonged military offensive, which began nearly two years ago in response to a militant attack in 2023. The Rome-based Integrated Food Security Phase Classification Initiative (IPC) has indicated that recent air-drops by various nations will be insufficient to avert the looming humanitarian disaster.
In a separate statement, UN humanitarian agencies have described Gaza as teetering on the brink of a full-scale famine, urging international donors to provide large-scale food aid immediately and without restrictions. The situation has been exacerbated by Israel’s total blockade on Gaza, which was imposed on March 2 after ceasefire negotiations failed. Although a limited amount of aid resumed in late May, warnings of mass starvation persist.
The IPC’s latest data reveals that famine thresholds have been met in most parts of Gaza, with hunger-related deaths among young children on the rise. Between April and mid-July, over 20,000 children were treated for acute malnutrition, with more than 3,000 cases deemed severe. Tragically, at least 16 children under the age of five have died from hunger since July 17.
Mounting evidence suggests that the widespread issues of starvation, malnutrition, and disease are contributing to an increase in hunger-related fatalities. Despite a recent tactical pause in Israeli military operations, which allowed over 120 truckloads of food into Gaza, the IPC has cautioned that air drops alone will not suffice in reversing the crisis. The organization advocates for road delivery as a more effective, safer, and faster means of providing aid, emphasizing the need for consistent life-saving treatment for those suffering from acute malnutrition.
Following the IPC’s urgent alert, UN agencies such as UNICEF, the World Food Programme (WFP), and the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) have stressed the urgency of the situation. FAO Director General Qu Dongyu highlighted the critical issue of access, stating that people are starving not due to a lack of food but because their access to it is blocked. The WFP’s emergency director, Ross Smith, compared the humanitarian disaster to the famines in Ethiopia and Nigeria’s Biafra region, labeling it as unmatched in this century.
The IPC is actively working on a new analysis to promptly release updated figures on the crisis in Gaza.