UN Confirms Famine in Gaza as Humanitarian Crisis Escalates – Aid Blockades and Delayed Action Intensify the Toll

Up to 800,000 Gazans face “catastrophic” famine amid condemnations of “starvation as a weapon” and mounting calls for immediate, large-scale humanitarian access.

Gaza, PUREWILAYAH.COM — The United Nations has officially classified the Gaza Strip as facing a full-blown famine, declaring that as many as 800,000 Palestinians are enduring life-threatening conditions marked by starvation, destitution, and death.

This grim status—IPC Phase 5—has been confirmed in and around Gaza City, the territory’s largest urban center. The United Nations-backed Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) warns that famine is likely to expand by the end of September to central and southern regions, including Deir el-Balah and Khan Younis.

UN officials emphasise that the crisis is entirely man-made, pointing to the collapse of Gaza’s food system, with nearly 98 percent of cropland destroyed or inaccessible, livestock wiped out, and a complete ban on fishing. The health infrastructure has also collapsed, with severely limited access to clean water and sanitation. Without an urgent ceasefire and unimpeded humanitarian access, famine-related mortality is expected to surge—especially among vulnerable groups. An estimated 132,000 children under five and 55,500 malnourished pregnant and breastfeeding women are in urgent need of nutrition support.

UN Secretary-General António Guterres condemned the famine as a “man-made disaster” and invoked Israel’s “unequivocal obligations” under international law to allow food and medical supplies to reach Gaza.

Meanwhile, Hamas described the UN’s famine declaration as a critically important but tragically overdue acknowledgment of a long-predicted catastrophe. The group reiterated that Israel’s blockade and denial of vital aid constitute “starvation as a weapon” and genocide, asserting that the international community has a “legal and moral responsibility” to halt the atrocities and act to save more than two million people from mass starvation.

The global humanitarian response has also been vocal. Oxfam stated that the UN’s famine recognition validates months of documentation by aid agencies. Helen Stawski from Oxfam UK denounced Israel’s near-total blockade of food and essential supplies, calling it a deliberate, reprehensible strategy that has blocked over $3.3 million in humanitarian aid from entering Gaza.

Philippe Lazzarini, head of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA), reiterated that starvation is being inflicted intentionally through the ban on food and aid—including from UNRWA—and emphasised that famine spread can still be halted through ceasefire and large-scale humanitarian action. Similarly, Mercy Corps warned that its staff in Gaza are themselves going hungry while trying to help others, noting that some life-saving aid supplies are already expired or stuck at crossings due to the blockade.

Conclusion:

The unfolding tragedy in Gaza is now recognised as a full-scale famine—not due to nature, but policy. International organizations and UN officials all point to deliberate denial of aid, obstruction of relief efforts, and continued hostilities as driving forces behind this human-made catastrophe. The world’s response in the coming days could determine whether this famine deepens into disaster—or can still be averted. (PW)

Source: PressTv