A report says famine has spread throughout the enclave after nine months of war.
United Nations human rights experts have accused Israel of carrying out a “targeted starvation campaign” that has led to the deaths of children in Gaza.
“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 said in a statement on Tuesday.
The Israeli diplomatic mission to the UN in Geneva rejected the statement and accused the experts of “spreading disinformation” and “supporting Hamas propaganda.”
Gaza health officials said at least 33 children have died of malnutrition, mostly in northern Gaza, which until recently bore the brunt of Israel’s military campaign launched in October.
In recent months, the war has also spread to southern Gaza, reducing aid flows into the enclave due to restrictions imposed by Israel, which has accused UN agencies of failing to distribute supplies effectively.
“With these children dying of hunger despite medical care provided in central Gaza, there is no doubt that famine has spread from northern Gaza to central and southern Gaza,” the experts said.
At a hospital in Khan Younis, Ghaneyma Joma told Reuters news agency on Monday that she feared her son would starve to death.
“It is heartbreaking to see my child… lying there, dying of malnutrition because I cannot provide him with anything because of the war, the closure of crossing points and the contaminated water,” she said.
Determining whether a famine exists is up to a UN-backed global monitoring system called the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC), which makes an assessment based on a set of technical criteria.
Last month, the IPC said Gaza remained at high risk of famine as the war continues and access to aid is restricted.
More than 495,000 people in Gaza, or more than a fifth of the population, are facing the most severe, or “catastrophic,” level of food insecurity, he said, down from 1.1 million predicted in the previous update in March. This level means people are suffering from extreme food shortages and starvation.
The Israeli mission in Geneva noted that the latest IPC assessment determined that famine had not materialized after access to aid improved somewhat.
“Israel has continuously strengthened its coordination and assistance in delivering humanitarian aid through the Gaza Strip, recently connecting its power line to the Gaza water desalination plant,” he added.