Expert report: Risk of famine persists in conflict-hit Gaza
Story | 17 October 2024
Emergency
The situation in northern Gaza is deteriorating even further.
Virtually the entire area is under evacuation orders, with thousands of families forced to flee amid intense airstrikes and military operations.
People have run out of ways to cope, food systems have collapsed and the risk of famine persists. The latest Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) snapshot – which uses global, scientific standards – projects that over 1.95 million people in Gaza (91 percent of the population) will face acute food insecurity over the coming months.
The World Food Programme (WFP) has been on the ground in Gaza since the onset of the crisis, to deliver life-saving food every day despite the mounting challenges. But without access it is impossible to reach people in need.
We have consistently called for a halt to fighting to enable WFP and humanitarian agencies to respond adequately to the crisis. If the flow of assistance does not resume, 1 million vulnerable people will be deprived of this lifeline.
WFP is deeply concerned by developments in the West Bank. The situation is volatile, amid large-scale Israeli military operations, restrictions of movement and increasing settler violence, and this is driving up hunger.
WFP needs US$177 million to continue its work in Gaza and the West Bank until the end of 2024.