Gaza faces ‘worst possible scenario of hunger’, says dietary safety agency linked to the UN

MANNUTRIDE CHILD IS TREATED IN GAZA HAITHAM IMAD/EPA-EFE/SHUTTERSTOCK The Integrated Food Security Phases Classification (IPC) has issued a warning that “the worst possible hunger scenario is currently materializing in the Gaza Strip”. The document, produced by a UN -based technical review, states: “Growing evidence shows that widespread hunger, malnutrition and diseases are causing an increase in hunger -related deaths.” “More recent data indicate that hunger thresholds have been achieved in relation to food consumption in most of the gaza range and acute malnutrition in the city of Gaza.” In May, the IPC had already warned that the approximately 2.1 million Palestinians living in Gaza were in a “critical risk” of hunger and faced “extreme levels of food insecurity.” Despite gravity, the new warning does not represent a formal statement of hunger in Gaza. The IPC reports that it will make a new analysis “without delay”. UN leaders ask for immediate ceasefire and more humanitarian aid Trump speaks of hunger in Gaza and defends ceasefire on the eve of the publication of the alert, several high-ranking United Nations authorities have spoken out about the situation in Gaza: António Guterres, UN Secretary-General: “The total destruction of Gaza is intolerable.” Tom Fletcher, UN Humanitarian Chief: “The next few days will be decisive. We need to deliver help on a much, much larger scale. It takes vast amounts of help going much faster.” Ben Majekodunmi, Chief of Staff of the UN Agency for Palestinian Refugees (Unrwa): “Words of indignation and condemnation are no longer enough in the face of what is happening. IMMEDIATE ACTION TO IMPROVE A LEVELY REQUIRED FOOD, REVERTING CURRENT HUILDING AND FREE ALL HELHES.” Both Israel and Hamas blame each other for the humanitarian situation in Gaza. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said, “There is no hunger in Gaza, no Hunger Politics in Gaza.” What else does the IPC report say? The same assessment supported by the UN states that “only immediate action to end hostilities” and humanitarian access “without impediments and on a large scale” can avoid more deaths and “catastrophic human suffering”. They are among the main points of the report: access to food and other essential items and services has fallen to “unprecedented levels”; From May to July 2025, the proportion of families facing extreme hunger has doubled; In the city of Gaza, the malnutrition rate went from 4.4% in May to 16.5% in July; In June, two fifths of pregnant or lactating women were in a state of acute malnutrition; North Gaza faces similar challenges and is pointed out as an “area of great concern”, but the lack of data prevents complete verification on Humanitarian Foundation Gaza (GHF), a group supported by Israel and the United States, the report says: the IPC hunger review committee has analyzed the food packages distributed by GHF and concluded that “the distribution plan would lead to hunger in hunger. mass “; Most items provided by GHF “are not ready for consumption and requires water and fuel for preparation, which are widely unavailable”; The report also criticizes access to GHF distribution points, which “requires long and risky displacements, with unequal access between regions.” What is necessary for a dietary crisis to be classified as hunger? IPC does not formally declare hunger, but provides technical analyzes that serve as a basis for governments and organisms issue official statements. According to the formal definition of the IPC, three criteria need to be met to characterize hunger: at least 20% of families have extreme lack of food and face hunger or misery; More than 30% of children under five suffer from acute malnutrition; Two adult deaths or four deaths of children every 10,000 people a day, caused by hunger or malnutrition. Collecting data in Gaza has been extremely difficult. Amande Biszerolle, responsible for the emergency response of doctors without borders (MSF) in Gaza, told AFP agency that blockages and fights prevent the necessary research for formal hunger classification. Jean-Raphael Poitou, director of the Middle East of the NGO Action Against Hunger, also heard by AFP, said that the forced displacements ordered by the Israeli army and the restrictions of movement in the most affected areas “enormously complicate” the situation. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu rejected the accusations that there is hunger in Gaza. On Sunday (27), he stated, “What a blatant lie. There is no hunger policy in Gaza, and there is no hunger in Gaza.” ‘We are facilitating the entry of help’ while the IPC report was released, Israel’s Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar spoke to journalists. Asked if Israel would be blocking humanitarian aid, Sa’ar replied that this is a “lie,” and that the “reality” is that the country is actually facilitating the entry of help. According to him, more than 200 trucks with humanitarian aid have entered Gaza since yesterday. “Anyone who wants to do this can do so,” he said. The minister also said that humanitarian corridors were opened and mentioned the tactical breaks announced over the weekend, between 10am and 8pm, so that the trucks would distribute the help safely. He also cited airline launches on Saturday and said: “There is no route we are not using.” However, the report published by the UN -supported agency points out that “humanitarian aid remains extremely restricted due to humanitarian access and frequent security incidents.”

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