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Famine is imminent in Gaza, says report

29 October 2024 20:00 (UTC +04:00)

Gaza is facing crisis levels of food insecurity or worse, according to the new Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) report released on Tuesday, APA reports citing The Guardian.

In Gaza’s two northern governorates, where about 300,000 people remain trapped, famine is expected to arrive between now and May.

The new report found that around half the population of Gaza have run out of food and face starvation.

“People in Gaza are starving to death right now. The speed at which this man-made hunger and malnutrition crisis has ripped through Gaza is terrifying,” said World Food Programme (WFP) executive director Cindy McCain.

“There is a very small window left to prevent an outright famine and to do that we need immediate and full access to the north. If we wait until famine has been declared, it’s too late. Thousands more will be dead.”

The WFP estimates that feeding people will require allowing at least 300 trucks to enter Gaza every day, but WFP has only taken nine convoys to the north since the start of the year.

Sending aid to Gaza requires clearance from Israel every day. Consequently, long waits can occur at the Wadi Gaza checkpoint, and truck convoys face looting and are frequently turned back; even if they do get through, looting remains a high risk.

“WFP and our partners have food supplies ready, at the border and in the region, to feed all 2.2 million people across Gaza -- but moving food into and within Gaza is like trying to navigate a maze, with obstacles at every turn,” said WFP Deputy Executive Director and Chief Operating Officer, Carl Skau.

“The complicated border controls, combined with the high tensions and desperation inside Gaza, make it nearly impossible for food supplies to reach people in need, particularly in the north. But the delivery of 18 trucks of food on Sunday shows that it can be done. This cannot be a one-off, but this needs to be sustained, regular and at scale to support those in need.”