A representative from the World Health Organization declares that a considerable number of residents in Gaza are suffering from severe hunger.
In the besieged Gaza Strip, over two million people are facing severe shortages of food and essentials after 21 months of conflict, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). The Director-General of the WHO, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, has warned of a deadly surge in malnutrition-related deaths in Gaza and described the situation as mass starvation.
Tedros has called for full access and a ceasefire in Gaza, stating that the population is trapped and facing yet another killer on top of bombs and bullets: starvation. He has also demanded a political solution to the problem, calling for a lasting solution.
The WHO chief has highlighted that starving people in Gaza are risking their lives to access aid, even after Israel began easing a more than two-month aid blockade in late May. The organizations warned that their colleagues and those they serve are wasting away due to the catastrophic humanitarian situation in Gaza.
The UN health agency has documented 21 deaths in Gaza related to malnutrition of children under the age of five since the beginning of the year. Over 20 percent of pregnant and breastfeeding women that have been screened in Gaza are malnourished, often severely.
Tedros has stated that the starvation in Gaza is "man-made" and clearly caused by Israel's blockade on the territory. Rates of global acute malnutrition exceed 10 percent in Gaza, according to the WHO.
Amnesty International has characterised Israel's deliberate restrictions on life-saving aid and essential supplies as a tactic of war amounting to genocide against Palestinians. Israel has imposed a militarized aid distribution system and severe blockades that prevent sufficient food, medical aid, and other basic necessities from reaching the civilian population in Gaza.
The UN rights office has stated that Israeli forces have killed over 1,000 Palestinians trying to get food aid in Gaza since the US- and Israel-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation started operations in late May.
The mass starvation crisis in Gaza is a matter of urgent concern, with ceasefire and unimpeded humanitarian access being the key to preventing further mass suffering and death. Israel is under mounting international pressure due to the catastrophic humanitarian situation in Gaza.
- The Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO), Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, has described the severe food and essential shortages in the besieged Gaza Strip as mass starvation.
- Tedros has stressed that the population in Gaza is trapped and facing starvation in addition to bombs and bullets.
- The UN health agency has reported 21 deaths in Gaza related to malnutrition of children under the age of five this year.
- Approximately 20 percent of pregnant and breastfeeding women screened in Gaza are malnourished, often severely.
- Amnesty International has accused Israel of using deliberate restrictions on life-saving aid and essential supplies as a tactic of war against Palestinians, potentially amounting to genocide.
- The WHO has stated that rates of global acute malnutrition exceed 10 percent in Gaza, a situation that Tedros described as "man-made" and directly caused by Israel's blockade on the territory.
