A global monitor of supported hunger in the United Nations has determined that famine now occurs in Gaza City and its surroundings.
The integrated classification of the food security phase (IPC) had previously warned that Gaza was on the brink of famine, but now said for the first time that the events of the last months – including a new Israeli offensive, increased trip and weeks of total Israeli blocking of the territory – made famine a reality in Gaza.
IPC experts warn that famine will spread to other areas of Gaza if nothing is done to stop the War of Israel and accelerate humanitarian aid. Let’s take a closer look.
What were the main conclusions of the report?
The main observation is that famine is no longer a threat to Gaza – it is now a reality. The IPC says that more than 500,000 people in the Gaza Strip are now faced with “catastrophic conditions”, the highest level of its food insecurity classification, “characterized by famine, destitution and death”.
In the Gaza governorate, which includes Gaza City, the IPC noted that 30% of the population is faced with catastrophic conditions, with 50% in the face of an “emergency”, the level below. The conditions in the governorate of North Gaza would be “as serious – or worse – as in the governorate of Gaza”, but the IPC is unable to classify the area due to limited data.
The IPC also provides that famine will also be present in the governors of Deir El-Balah and Khan Younis by the end of September. The IPC already determines that 25 and 20% of the population of these governors respectively, are already classified as in a level 5 disaster.
It also provides that 132,000 children between five and six years will suffer from acute malnutrition before next June of next year, as well as 55,000 pregnant and breastfed women and 25,000 infants needing urgent nutritional support.
Rafah, the most southern governor of Gaza, was not analyzed by the IPC because he was largely depopulated by the Palestinians following Israeli military operations.
How did the IPC conclude that a famine started in Gaza?
The IPC has a five -step food insecurity classification, with the “disaster” the worst. A disaster is classified as when “households experience an extreme lack of food and / or cannot meet other basic needs even after the full employment of adaptation strategies”.
In a level 5 disaster, “famine, death, extremely critical acuteness and acute malnutrition are obvious”.
However, a classification of famine is distinct from this. For a “famine with reasonable evidence” to be declared, as she now has Gaza, there must be clear evidence that two of the three thresholds for acute food insecurity, acute malnutrition and mortality have been reached. The thresholds are that at least 20 percent of households “have an extreme lack of food and face famine and destitution”, that acute malnutrition in children under five affects 30% or more, and that there are at least two deaths per day following food insecurity.
What did the IPC say about the famine in Gaza?
The IPC blames four factors which he says “artificial”: conflict, displacement, restricted access and collapse of the food system.
The War of Israel in Gaza has already killed more than 62,000 Palestinians in the 22 months from the start. The IPC stresses that deaths and injuries increased spectacularly in July, with an average of 119 deaths per day, almost double the average of the previous month.
The continuous offensives of Israel have led to numerous travel cycles for the Gaza population – the CIP pointing that 1.9 million people have been moved more than once since the start of the war. The constant movement and the lack of safe accommodation contributed to the deterioration of the food security situation in Gaza, as well as the destruction or inaccessibility of 98% of the cultivated land of Gaza and the prohibition of the fishing activity.
To worsen things, Israel has imposed a total blockage of food supplies and other products, including water, medicines and fuel, in Gaza in mid-March. He has since raised the total blockade, but serious restrictions on imports remain.
Why is the determination of the IPC so important?
The IPC is recognized as the main tool that the international community and the UN use to determine the levels of food insecurity in the world.
The data provided by the IPC is essential to get rid of future food attacks and prevent famine. He can also rally the international community to act early enough to prevent famine from performing, or put an end to a famine once it has started.
The process of classification of a famine is complicated and there are several stages, with the contribution of a wide range of organizations and groups, before it goes to a famine examination committee made up of “leader of international experts in food security, nutrition and mortality”. In the words of the IPC, this committee must “carry out an exam to ensure the technical rigor and the neutrality of the analysis before the results are confirmed and communicated”.
The IPC previously classified famines in Somalia in 2011, South Sudan in 2017 and 2020 and Sudan in 2024.
What was the reaction?
The Secretary General of the United Nations Antonio Guterres described the famine as “artificial disaster, a moral act and a failure of humanity itself”.
Guterres said that Israel had “unequivocal obligations” under international law to ensure that food and medical supplies have entered Gaza because it is the power of occupation.
“Famine is not only a question of food; it is the deliberate collapse of the systems necessary for human survival,” said Guterres. “People are hungry. Children die. And those who have a duty to act fail. “
Humanitarian organizations require action.
“Today’s conclusions must be alarm clock for the international community,” said David Miliband, president of the International Rescue Committee. “Without immediate and unhindered humanitarian access and a ceasefire, more lives will be lost because of famine and illness.”
For his part, Israel rejected the conclusions, claiming that there was no famine in Gaza, despite the evidence of the IPC.
“More than 100,000 aid trucks have entered Gaza since the start of the war, and in recent weeks, a massive influx of aid has flooded the basic food product and caused a sharp drop in food prices, which fell on the markets,” the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Israel said in a statement.
