Famine Threat Grows in Gaza as Aid Fails to Reach Millions

• Jul 29, 2025

A severe food crisis is unfolding in the Gaza Strip, with experts warning that the "worst-case scenario of famine" is now taking place after nearly 22 months of war.

According to the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC), the situation has reached a critical point, with widespread starvation, malnutrition, and disease driving up hunger-related deaths. The IPC report, based on data up to July 25, warns that famine thresholds have already been met in most parts of Gaza for food consumption and in Gaza City for acute malnutrition.

The alert, while not a formal famine declaration, highlights how access restrictions and ongoing hostilities have worsened conditions dramatically. The IPC says the only way to prevent further deaths is through immediate, large-scale humanitarian access and an end to the violence.

Famine is officially declared when three key conditions are met: at least 20% of households face extreme food shortages, 30% of children under five suffer from acute malnutrition, and at least two people or four children per 10,000 die each day due to hunger or related diseases. While Gaza lacks full access to gather data, existing evidence meets these criteria.

One in three people in Gaza is now going days without food, and hospitals are reporting a sharp rise in hunger-related deaths among children under five. Nearly 17 out of every 100 children in Gaza City are acutely malnourished, according to the IPC.

Israel recently introduced limited humanitarian pauses and aid airdrops, but U.N. officials and local sources say the measures have had little impact. Aid convoys continue to be looted by desperate crowds before reaching their intended destinations, and essential services have collapsed across much of the territory.

Although Israel claims it allows unlimited aid into Gaza, humanitarian groups say military restrictions, insecurity, and looting make delivery nearly impossible. Doctors Without Borders has called the current airdrops ineffective and unsafe, urging a return to ground aid routes.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu denies allegations of deliberate starvation, claiming sufficient aid is being allowed. However, criticism is mounting internationally. “Those children look very hungry,” U.S. President Donald Trump said Monday, reacting to recent images from Gaza.

The IPC warns that without urgent action, “widespread death” will occur across Gaza.