For months, Gaza has been on the brink of famine.
But several UN human rights experts now warn there is “no doubt” that famine already exists across the Gaza Strip.
“Israel’s intentional and targeted campaign of starvation against the Palestinian people is a form of genocidal violence and has resulted in famine throughout the Gaza Strip,” 10 independent UN experts, including the Special Rapporteur on the right to food and the Special Rapporteur on human rights in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, said in a statement on Tuesday.
They accused Israel of fomenting conditions that led to famine in Gaza and called for an end to Israeli bombardments of the besieged enclave, which have lasted for nearly ten months.
So how can we know if famine has set in in Gaza and can we stop it?
How do you define “famine”?
According to the UN-backed monitoring agency, the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC), the term “famine” refers to widespread and severe shortages of food among a population.
An area considered to be suffering from famine is assigned an “IPC Phase 5” score, the highest phase of the IPC acute food insecurity scale.
Three conditions must be met for there to be famine:
- At least 20% of the region’s population faces extreme levels of hunger;
- 30 percent of children in the region are too thin for their height; and
- The death rate has doubled the average, exceeding two deaths per 10,000 per day among adults and four deaths per 10,000 per day among children.
In times of famine, people typically have access to only one or two food groups and there is an extreme shortage of calories – well below 2,100 per person per day, according to the World Food Programme (WFP).
So, is there a famine in Gaza?
In its latest assessment, carried out last month, the IPC said Gaza remained at “high risk” of famine as the war continues and access to aid is restricted, but did not classify the situation as famine.
“While the entire territory is classified as Emergency (IPC Phase 4), more than 495,000 people (22 percent of the population) continue to face catastrophic levels of acute food insecurity (IPC Phase 5),” the IPC said. “In this phase, households are experiencing extreme food shortages, starvation, and exhaustion of coping capacities.”
The ICC itself does not declare famine, but provides evidence to stakeholders, such as the UN or government authorities.
Despite the ICC’s assessment, the UN’s independent panel of experts said on Tuesday that “the increasing deaths of Palestinian children from hunger and malnutrition leave no doubt that famine has spread throughout the Gaza Strip.”
The group said the deaths of several children in the besieged enclave from malnutrition and dehydration indicated that health and social structures had been attacked and deeply weakened.
“When the first child dies of malnutrition and dehydration, it becomes irrefutable that famine has set in,” the experts said.
The group said that child deaths from hunger had already “confirmed that famine has struck northern Gaza.” Now, with several more children also dying from hunger, “there is no doubt that famine has spread from northern Gaza to central and southern Gaza,” the 10 UN experts said.
In May, the executive director of the World Food Programme (WFP) also warned that northern Gaza was experiencing a “widespread famine” that was “moving south”.
In June, the Famine Early Warning Systems Network (FEWS NET) said in a report that famine was likely already underway in northern Gaza.
What are the living conditions in Gaza?
In March, Tel Aviv Tribune followed three families in Gaza for three days to document how they were coping with food shortages.
“We still eat the same things: canned food, fresh cheese in cartons and beans. We heat them on the fire to eat them. Before, we could find sugar, but now it has become expensive. We make tea with dukkah (a type of dried herb) or thyme… that’s enough,” Umm Muhammed told Tel Aviv Tribune.
On a typical day, Umm Mohammed would prepare a meal for her family of eight: saj bread with fresh cheese. This daily meal would contain about 330 calories per person, well below the recommended daily average of at least 1,000 calories for children and about 2,000 calories for adults.
Their story is typical of many families in the territory, where Gaza health officials say at least 33 children have died of malnutrition since the war began on October 7, many of them in northern Gaza.
With no food available, some Gazans are reduced to drinking sewage water and eating animal feed, according to Hanan Balkhy, the World Health Organization’s (WHO) regional director for the Eastern Mediterranean.
Why did this happen?
The UN panel of experts blamed Israel for starting the famine, accusing it of waging a “targeted starvation campaign,” largely by blocking aid deliveries, as well as relentless bombing of the Gaza Strip, which has killed at least 38,295 people – with thousands more lost under the rubble and presumed dead – and injured 88,241.
Moreover, in May, when International Criminal Court (ICC) prosecutor Karim Khan requested arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant on charges of alleged war crimes, the specific crimes listed included “starvation of civilians as a method of warfare.”
A famine claim can be used as evidence before the ICC and the International Court of Justice (ICJ), where Israel faces allegations of genocide brought by South Africa.
A UN-backed independent commission also accused Israel of inflicting hunger on Palestinians.
Is there a way to end the famine in Gaza?
Since the start of the war, humanitarian agencies have been calling for immediate and safe access to Gaza through its border crossings so that food can be distributed to residents.
In late March, the ICJ ordered Israel to act immediately to take all necessary measures to allow the “unhindered” delivery of aid to Gaza to prevent famine.
Despite this, aid agencies continue to report difficulties and obstacles to access. Earlier this week, Reuters reported that hundreds of trucks loaded with food and water were still stuck in Egypt – some for nearly two months – waiting for permission to enter Gaza to deliver supplies.
Even if humanitarian aid does manage to reach us, it may not be enough. Nour Shawaf, Oxfam’s MENA policy advisor, previously told Tel Aviv Tribune that humanitarian aid alone will not end hunger and famine. A ceasefire is needed to allow humanitarian operations to scale up.
In a report published in March, the CIP recommended solutions such as providing ready-to-use infant formula and micronutrient supplements for the most vulnerable, including young children, pregnant women and the elderly.
Doctors Without Borders, known by its French initials MSF, and other humanitarian organizations have in recent months tried to respond to rising malnutrition rates by distributing nutritional supplements.
The CIP report also recommends restoring markets, including bakeries, as well as food production systems, such as fisheries and horticulture.
