Gaza’s Entire Population Facing Severe Food Insecurity

The entire population of Gaza is experiencing “severe levels of acute food insecurity,” US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Tuesday, underscoring the urgency of increasing the delivery of humanitarian aid into the Palestinian territory.

“According to the most respected measure of these things, 100 percent of the population in Gaza is at severe levels of acute food insecurity. That’s the first time an entire population has been so classified,” Blinken told a press conference in the Philippines, where he is on an official visit.

Blinken’s remarks came on the eve of a trip to the Middle East, this time to Saudi Arabia and Egypt, to discuss efforts to secure a temporary ceasefire in Gaza and ramp up aid deliveries.

A United Nations-backed food security assessment warned Monday that half of Gazans are experiencing “catastrophic” hunger, with famine projected to hit the north of the territory by May unless there is urgent intervention.

According to the assessment, 95% of the Strip’s roughly 2.23 million residents currently face high levels of acute food insecurity.

The analysis projected that the entire population would reach this status by mid-July, under the assumption that hostilities in Gaza intensify and that Israeli forces expand a ground offensive into Rafah, a move currently opposed by the US.

BBC