The war, coupled with Israel’s complete siege on Gaza, caused a humanitarian catastrophe and the collapse of the local health sector.
A United Nations expert has declared an “unprecedented” humanitarian crisis, accusing Israel of deliberately dismantling Gaza’s food system.
Michael Fakhri warns that the entire civilian population in Gaza is being pushed into hunger at an alarming rate, a situation that could lead to severe health issues such as disease, prolonged malnutrition, dehydration, and starvation.
“It’s unprecedented to make an entire civilian population go hungry this completely & quickly. Israel is destroying Gaza’s food system. Israel is intentionally imposing a high rate of disease, prolonged malnutrition, dehydration + starvation by destroying civilian infrastructure,” Fakhri said on his X platform.
Since early October, Israel has imposed full blockade and control over the entry of food and water into Gaza, enforcing even more restrictions in the northern part of the enclave.
Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant stated on October 9 that basic access to Gaza would be restricted for essential resources such as food, water, fuel, and medicine, asserting: “We are fighting human animals.”
80% of those facing famine or catastrophic hunger globally are now residents of Gaza, a condition that signifies an unparalleled humanitarian crisis within the Gaza Strip amidst the ongoing bombardment and blockade by Israel, UN human rights experts said on January 16, according to an OHCHR statement.
Stunting, a consequence of insufficient nourishment, hinders the growth of the children in Palestine, leading to irreversible physical and cognitive impairments that threaten to compromise the learning capabilities of an entire generation.
“Currently every single person in Gaza is hungry, a quarter of the population are starving and struggling to find food and drinkable water, and famine is imminent. Pregnant women are not receiving adequate nutrition and healthcare, putting their lives at risk,” the experts said.
“In addition all children under five – 335,000 – are at high risk of severe malnutrition as the risk of famine conditions continues to increase, a whole generation is now in danger of suffering from stunting,” the experts added.
“Nowhere is safe in Gaza,” the statement read, adding that Israel imposing a “total siege” since October 9, deprived the 2.3 million Palestinians of crucial resources such as water, food, fuel, medicine, and medical supplies.
Separately, Israel has denied access to around 95% of aid missions from delivering aid to northern Gaza within the first two weeks of January, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said in its flash update on January 16.
The war, coupled with Israel’s complete siege on Gaza, caused a humanitarian catastrophe and the collapse of the local health sector.
Since October 7, Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza has killed at least 25,295 Palestinians and wounded 63,000 others.
