Nearly two years since the Israel-Hamas war erupted, the food insecurity situation in parts of the Palestinian territory of Gaza now stands at the highest and most severe level, according to the United Nations-backed body Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC).
In its latest analysis, the IPC said Famine, which equates to “IPC Phase 5,” is confirmed in the Gaza Governorate “with reasonable evidence.”
It is expected to further expand in the coming weeks, amid Israel’s continued blocking of international humanitarian aid, as part of its efforts to pressure Hamas into releasing all Israeli hostages and totally eradicating its presence and influence in the embattled territory.
As of August 15, “over half a million people in the Gaza Strip are facing catastrophic conditions characterised by starvation, destitution and death,” reads the IPC analysis, released on August 22.
Another 1.07 million people, or 54%, are in the state of Emergency (IPC Phase 4) in terms of food insecurity, while 396,000 others, or 20%, are in Crisis (IPC Phase 3), it noted.
From the Gaza Governorate, the Famine is projected to reach Deir al-Balah and Khan Younis Governorates between mid-August and end of September, affecting around 641,000 people, or nearly a third of the population.
Within the said period, those under Emergency level “will likely rise to 1.14 million, or 58% of the population”, the IPC estimates.
“A failure of humanity”
Reacting to the IPC’s latest findings, United Nations General Secretary Antonio Guterres denounced the worsening food insecurity in Gaza as not only “a man-made disaster” but “a moral indictment and a failure of humanity itself.”
“Famine is not about food; it is the deliberate collapse of the systems needed for human survival,” the UN chief said in a statement.
“People are starving. Children are dying. And those with the duty to act are failing.”
He then held Israel accountable, noting that “as the occupying power,” it has the “unequivocal obligations under international law – including the duty of ensuring food and medical supplies of the population.”
“We cannot allow this situation to continue with impunity,” he lamented.
“We need an immediate ceasefire, the immediate release of all hostages, and full, unfettered humanitarian access.”
Israel denies famine
In a separate statement, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Israel insisted “there is no famine in Gaza,” denouncing the IPC’s report as “tailor-made” and “fabricated” to “fit Hamas’s fake campaign.”
“Unbelievably, the IPC twisted its own rules and ignored its own criteria just to produce false accusations against Israel: the IPC changed its own global standard, cutting the 30% threshold to 15% for this report only, and totally ignoring its second criterion of death rate, solely to serve Hamas’s fake campaign,” reads the MFA’s statement.
The ministry claimed that since the start of the war, “over 100,000 trucks of aid have entered Gaza” and “a massive influx of aid has flooded the Strip” in recent weeks, resulting in “sharp decline in food prices.”
“The laws of supply and demand don’t lie – the IPC does. Every forecast the IPC has made regarding Gaza during the war has proven baseless and completely false,” it declared, and pledged to throw IPC’s assessment “into the despicable trash bin of political documents.”
Israel’s denial contradicts the testament of more than 100 humanitarian groups, multiple UN bodies and various governments, who claimed to have an array of stranded aid shipments for Gaza.
In a joint statement on August 14, major international non-governmental organisations said
Israeli authorities have rejected their requests to bring “lifesaving goods” to the Strip.
The NGOs have been told that they are “not authorised to deliver aid,” despite the fact that “most of them have worked in Gaza for decades,” and “are trusted by communities and experienced in delivering aid safely,” the groups said.
“In July alone, over 60 requests were denied under this justification,” they noted.
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Adam Peaker 
Hyacinth Estrada 
Ian Trinidad