As Israels onslaught continues, one in three faces starvation in Gaza: Report
Gaza's health ministry reports that Israel's ongoing military campaign has killed 60,239 Palestinians and injured 146,894 others since October 7, 2023. In the past 24 hours alone, Israeli attacks have reportedly killed 101 Palestinians, including 81 people seeking humanitarian aid, and wounded another 625. Since Israel introduced a new aid distribution mechanism on May 27, a total of 1,320 aid seekers have been killed and over 8,818 injured, according to the ministry.
New Delhi: Gaza is facing a rapidly worsening food crisis amid what the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) has described as a "blockade of aid" by Israel. According to the IPC's latest report, two out of the three famine thresholds, plummeting food consumption and acute malnutrition, have already been met in the war-torn Gaza Strip. However, the third threshold, famine-related deaths, has not yet been demonstrated, and thus famine has not been formally declared.
The report also mentioned about the mounting evidence over "widespread starvation, malnutrition and disease". According to Al Jazeera, at least 147 people have died of starvation, 88 of them children or infants, largely due to Israel's continued obstruction of humanitarian aid.
"This is clearly a disaster unfolding in front of our eyes, on our television screens," said Ross Smith, director of emergencies at the UN World Food Programme (WFP). He added that this was not a warning but a call for action adding that this was unlike anything "we have seen in this century".
One in three people in Gaza going without food for days
The IPC estimates that one in three people in Gaza is now going without food for days at a time. Hospitals are reportedly overwhelmed with children suffering from acute malnutrition, with more than 20,000 children treated since April. According to a UN news report, at least 16 children under the age of five have died of hunger-related causes in the second half of July alone.
The IPC's May 2025 analysis projects that the entire population of Gaza could face catastrophic levels of food insecurity by September. It warns that at least half a million people may fall into IPC Phase 5, catastrophe,marked by starvation, destitution, and imminent death.
Gaza's health ministry reports that Israel's ongoing military campaign has killed 60,239 Palestinians and injured 146,894 others since October 7, 2023. In the past 24 hours alone, Israeli attacks have reportedly killed 101 Palestinians, including 81 people seeking humanitarian aid, and wounded another 625. Since Israel introduced a new aid distribution mechanism on May 27, a total of 1,320 aid seekers have been killed and over 8,818 injured, according to the ministry.
70 per cent of Gaza's infrastructure destroyed
The crisis stems from the Hamas-led terror attacks in October 2023 that left over 1,250 people dead in Israel and around 250 taken hostage. Israel then launched an all out attack on Hamas and its infrastructures.
According to the UN, over 70 per cent of Gaza's infrastructure has been destroyed. The IPC adds that areas considered "safe" now comprise less than 12 per cent of the territory. Of Gaza's 2.1 million residents, 90 per cent have been displaced, many multiple times.
Last week, Israel announced it would begin daily humanitarian pauses to allow aid into Gaza. More than 100 trucks reportedly entered on the first day, but the UN continues to call for a massive influx of food, fuel and medical supplies. "This nightmare must end," said UN Secretary-General António Guterres. "Ending this worst-case scenario will require the best efforts of all parties, now."