[ Source: BBC News ]
A UN-backed assessment says Gaza’s population of around 2.1 million Palestinians is at “critical risk” of famine and faces “extreme levels of food insecurity” as an Israeli blockade on humanitarian aid continues.
The latest report by the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification says there has been a “major deterioration” since October 2024, but concluded famine was not currently occurring.
The report says the two-month ceasefire between Israel and Hamas “led to a temporary reprieve” in Gaza, but renewed hostilities and an Israeli blockade on aid – ongoing since early March – has “reversed” any improvements.
It says some 244,000 people are currently experiencing the most severe, or “catastrophic” levels of food insecurity.
The report is calling for urgent action to prevent the “increasingly likely” risk of famine.
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