Gaza faces mass starvation with supplies 'totally depleted', aid agencies warn
Large amounts of food, clean water and medical supplies are sitting untouched just outside Gaza, but the groups blamed Israel for its "restrictions" which they say is creating "chaos, starvation, and death".
The situation has become so bad, aid agencies warned they were seeing even their own colleagues "waste away before their eyes".
Israel, which controls all supplies entering Gaza, has denied it is responsible for shortages of food and other supplies.
In a statement signed by 111 organisations, the groups said: "As the Israeli government's siege starves the people of Gaza, aid workers are now joining the same food lines, risking being shot just to feed their families.
"With supplies now totally depleted, humanitarian organisations are witnessing their own colleagues and partners waste away before their eyes.
"The government of Israel's restrictions, delays, and fragmentation under its total siege have created chaos, starvation, and death."
The groups called for governments to demand the lifting of all restrictions and for the restoration of a "principled, UN-led humanitarian response".
The Norwegian Refugee Council, which backed the statement and is one of the largest independent aid organisations in Gaza, said it has no more supplies to distribute and some of its staff are starving - and accused Israel of paralysing its work.
"Our last tent, our last food parcel, our last relief items have been distributed. There is nothing left," Jan Egeland, the secretary general of the council, told the Reuters news agency.
4:10
United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said "starvation is knocking on every door" in the Palestinian territory, describing the situation as a "horror show".
Palestinian officials said at least 101 people are known to have died of malnutrition during the conflict in Gaza, including 80 children, most of them in recent weeks.
6:22
Some food stocks in Gaza have run out since Israel cut off all supplies in March and then lifted the blockade in May with new measures it said were needed to prevent aid from being diverted to militant groups.
Israel has blamed the UN for failing to protect aid it says is stolen by Hamas and other groups. The fighters deny stealing it.
The UK and several other countries have condemned the current aid delivery model, which is backed by the Israeli and American governments.
It has reportedly resulted in Israeli troops firing on Palestinian civilians in search of food on multiple occasions.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Independent
2 hours ago
- The Independent
‘Worst-case famine scenario' unfolding as Starmer calls emergency cabinet meeting
UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer will convene an emergency cabinet meeting later to discuss a peace plan and aid for Gaza, where experts warn a famine is unfolding. A UN-backed food security body said recent developments, including Israel's tightening blockades, have 'dramatically worsened' conditions in Gaza, which has been on the brink of famine for two years. The 'worst-case scenario of famine is currently playing out,' the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification said. It comes after Donald Trump acknowledged 'real starvation ' in Gaza and pledged to set up food centres without 'fences'. He dismissed Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu 's claim that there was no starvation in Gaza and urged him to ensure aid reaches Palestinians. Local officials confirmed at least 14 more Palestinians, including two children, had died from hunger and malnutrition, bring the toll from starvation to 147, including 88 children. If you're just joining us: A UN-backed food security monitor this morning alerted that 'the worst-case scenario of famine is currently playing out in the Gaza Strip' . The alert said famine thresholds have been met for most of the Gaza Strip and for acute malnutrition in Gaza City. The Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) is a global authority providing criteria for famine but it is up to aid agencies and governments to officially declare famine. Israel's foreign minister denied accusations that it's withholding aid, saying it's a 'lie'. The death toll has now surpassed 60,000 in Gaza, according to the enclave's health ministry. In Scotland, Trump has said he's working with Israel's prime minister 'to try and get things straightened out'. Steffie Banatvala29 July 2025 13:16 In pictures: Inside an aid package dropped from the sky over Gaza Steffie Banatvala29 July 2025 13:00 ICYMI: Trump calls out 'real starvation' in Gaza US president Donald Trump said on Monday that he is 'not particularly convinced' by Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu's claim that there is no starvation in Gaza, adding: 'Based on television, I would say not particularly, because those children look very hungry.' Later, Trump asserted there was 'real starvation' in the territory, saying: 'You can't fake that', and pledged to set up 'food centres' in Gaza amid growing global outrage over the humanitarian crisis. Israel has denied widespread famine, calling the images of emaciated children misleading or isolated, but has begun daily 10-hour pauses in fighting to allow more aid to enter by land and air. Steffie Banatvala29 July 2025 12:56 'I haven't eaten since yesterday, I worry about the baby I am carrying': pregnant mother in Nuseirat A mother of five and currently pregnant, Samah, 32, has not eaten since yesterday. 'No flour, no food, no water. I swear to God. The place we're in is destitute. 'I am pregnant, but I have not eaten anything since yesterday. I swear to God. The children and the elderly too. We have a diabetic family member, he had two surgeries, he is in need of food and water, and safety, but there is none. 'I do not worry about myself when it comes to eating and drinking water, I worry about the baby I'm carrying. I worry about securing diapers and formula milk for my baby. This is the biggest source of stress and pressure that I am experiencing as a mother. Now I am preparing diapers for the baby using rags because there are no diapers because a bag of diapers is being sold for 4 or 5 million shekels.' Samah is currently displaced in Nuseirat and travelled on foot to the CARE clinic, which provides children, pregnant and breastfeeding women with malnutrition screening and supplements. 'I used to pray every day that things will get better and that food, water, formula milk and diapers for the children would get in,' she told CARE. 'After an airstrike hit really close to the place we were in, we said we do not want food, we just want an end to the bloodshed and an end to this war, because mentally we are destroyed.' Steffie Banatvala29 July 2025 12:30 Trump says he's 'straightening things out' with Netanyahu US President Donald Trump has said he's 'working to get things straightened out' with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Speaking to reporters in Scotland, Trump's comments follow his meeting with Prime Minister Keir Starmer yesterday. Steffie Banatvala29 July 2025 12:24 'Safe spaces are becoming virtually non-existent': IPC The latest IPC report on Gaza on a worst-case famine scenario unfolding in Gaza has also found that safe spaces in the besieged enclave are shrinking. 'Safe spaces are becoming virtually non-existent,' the latest IPC report found. 'The population is increasingly confined to ever-shrinking areas not designated as military zones or subject to displacement orders - primarily in Gaza City and the middle governorates.' Steffie Banatvala29 July 2025 12:11 UN agencies renew calls for unconditional aid deliveries UN agencies have issued a joint response to today's famine alert by the UN-backed IPC food security body, highlighting the desperate need for action in Gaza. 'Emaciated children and babies are dying from malnutrition in Gaza,' the UN's agency for the welfare of children said. Unicef chief Catherine Russell called for 'immediate, safe and unhindered humanitarian access across Gaza' to scale up food, water and medical deliveries. 'Without that, mothers and fathers will continue to face a parent's worst nightmare, powerless to save a starving child from a condition we are able to prevent.' The World Food Programme's executive director said waiting for the official IPC confirmation of famine to provide aid is 'unconscionable'. 'The longer we wait to act, the higher the death toll will rise,' Cindy McCain said. Steffie Banatvala29 July 2025 12:00 Young mother struggles to breastfeed 11-month old son in Deir Al-Balah Noura, 27, carefully cradled her 11-month toddler while waiting in line to get him screened for malnutrition at CARE's primary healthcare centre in Deir Al-Balah. He has already missed some of his developmental milestones like crawling and teething. 'My son is supposed to be drinking formula milk, but there is none to offer. I give him an empty feeding bottle just to distract him,' Noura told CARE. 'I am barely able to breastfeed him, my milk has almost dried up because I'm also not eating well.' Steffie Banatvala29 July 2025 11:30 Analysis: Peter Kyle's comments opposing Palestinian state recognition are more about cabinet splits The tech secretary Peter Kyle was very strong this morning in his opposition to recognising Palestinian statehood. He warned against 'rewarding Hamas' for its 7 October attacks and made his opposition very clear over a change of policy. But these comments were less about government policy and more about cabinet splits. Mr Kyle is one of a group of cabinet ministers including chancellor Rachel Reeves and chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster Pat McFadden who were previously senior officers in Labour Friends of Israel (LFI), a very influential group in the party. They played a major role with LFI in tackling the antisemitism on the party under Jeremy Corbyn's leadership and restoring trust with Jews. But like LFI now they do not want the Oslo Accords ripped up with premature recognition of a Palestinian state. They want it to be part of a lengthy peace process towards a two state solution. Across the floor on this are cabinet ministers such as deputy prime minister Angela Rayner and justice secretary Shabana Mahmood who want the UK to recognise a Palestinian state now. David Maddox, political editor29 July 2025 11:29 Tory ex-foreign ministers leave Kemi Badenoch isolated on Palestine Tobias Ellwood, the last Tory foreign minister to lead a debate against early recognition of a Palestinian state, has written for The Independent today explaining why he has changed his mind. It comes as another respected Tory former foreign minister Alistair Burt has also broken ranks with his party this morning saying now is the time to recognise Palestine as a state. The interventions are a major embarrassment for the current Tory leader Kemi Badenoch who over the weekend doubled down on her opposition to the move. In his piece Mr Ellwood argued that recognising Palestine as a state now may be the only way to save the prospects of a two-state solution. He said: 'Waiting endlessly for the 'perfect moment' is not a strategy. The current status quo, or the pursuit of a one-state solution, will only entrench a perpetual insurgency, fuelled externally and leaving Israel in a state of permanent tensions with its neighbours.' The issue is just the latest example of a divide between centrist Tories and the increasingly strident right-wing leadership of Ms Badenoch. Why I've changed my mind about a state of Palestine David Maddox, political editor29 July 2025 11:16
The Independent
2 hours ago
- The Independent
First group of Syrian refugees returns home from Lebanon under new UN plan
The first group of Syrian refugees returned home from Lebanon on Tuesday under a new plan the United Nations developed with the Lebanese government following the downfall of Bashar Assad 's rule in December. Syria's uprising-turned-conflict displaced half of the country's pre-war population of 23 million over the last 14 years. Lebanon hosted an estimated 1.5 million refugees, at one point making up roughly a quarter of its six million people, with many having been smuggled across the border and unregistered with the UN. The new plan has the UN refugee agency offering $100 in cash to each repatriated Syrian refugee and the Lebanese authorities waiving any fees or fines they owe. The UNHCR and the International Organization for Migration will provide them with buses for their return journey. The UNHCR also says it will help returning Syrians with "cash grants, legal assistance for civil documents, psychosocial support, livelihood opportunities, and other protection services.' The strain on Lebanon as poverty spreads Lebanese authorities have repeatedly requested the repatriation of Syrian refugees over the years, a call that grew louder with the widespread poverty in the Mediterranean country and shrinking funding for aid agencies. But Syria under Assad was not yet safe for their return, according to major rights organizations. Many Syrians had also previously said the war, forced conscription under Syria's former government, and unpaid residency fines in Lebanon have held them back from returning. But Syria now has a new government under President Ahmed al-Sharaa, who led the surprise offensive that ousted Assad, and the Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam's government hopes Syrians will sign up for the joint repatriation plan. The UNHCR estimates that over 205,000 Syrians have crossed back into the country from Lebanon since December, of which at least 126,000 were confirmed to be full returns, said Abou Khaled. Thousands of Syrian refugees are ready to return home UNHCR Lebanon spokesperson Lisa Abou Khaled says about 17,000 Syrian refugees in Lebanon have already signed up to go back to their home country, though the vast majority have opted not to take the buses. Tuesday's repatriation was a 'test run,' she said, with only 72 people, mostly going to Syria's third-largest city of Homs and rural Damascus. Syrian border authorities greeted the returning refugees with roses and water bottles, as they filled out forms after exiting the bus. Some took pictures in front of Syria's new green flag. Among them was Rasha, who told The Associated Press she was elated to return for the first time in 14 years. 'We're going home with nothing, but it's easier than having to keep paying rent,' she said, using only her first name. She and her husband are heading to Homs. Before, she wouldn't leave because her sons were at the age of conscription, which she described as 'sending your son to his death." They also couldn't afford to pay all the fines for overstaying in Lebanon for 14 years. Raghad fled to Lebanon when she was 10 years old after her father was killed in Homs, and is returning for the first time to her family home with her siblings and their children. 'We're hoping to fix it so we can live there for a bit," she said. 'I can't imagine myself living there without Dad." A humanitarian crisis still exists in Syria Despite Washington lifting decades-long sanctions, Syria is still reeling from an economic crisis that has pulled the vast majority of its population into poverty. It's still also trying to rebuild hundreds of billions of dollars in battered infrastructure after the conflict. Abou Khaled, the UNHCR Lebanon spokesperson, warns that this might hinder long-term returns if not resolved soon. 'We must acknowledge that there is a real humanitarian crisis in Syria that remains very significant,' she explained. 'Millions of people will need urgent help to be able to return in a sustainable way.' — Chehayeb reported from Beirut.
The Guardian
2 hours ago
- The Guardian
European Commission proposes partially suspending Israel from Horizon programme
The European Commission has proposed partially suspending Israel from its flagship £80bn Horizon science research programme over what officials called a 'severe' humanitarian crisis in Gaza. It comes amid worldwide condemnation of Israel's actions in Gaza including demands by Donald Trump that it must do more to stop the 'real starvation'. On Tuesday, the leading international authority on food crises, the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification, said the 'worst-case scenario of famine is currently playing out' in Gaza. Horizon Europe is among the most prestigious science research programmes in the world and has never suspended a country before. Officials believe, however, the humanitarian crisis in Gaza is so severe that it now has a legal basis for suspension. In its proposal to member states the commission reports that '90% of households face severe water insecurity and malnutrition rates are rising sharply' with 'severe shortages of medicine' and 'virtually the entire Gaza population … at risk of famine'. Israel has denied that it is the cause of starvation, blaming it on other factors including the looting of aid by Hamas and distribution failures by the UN. It said on Tuesday that 'over 200 trucks were collected and distributed yesterday by the UN and international organisations' with an additional 260 awaiting collection and distribution. That volume of aid is, however, still below the levels needed. Before the war, an average of 500 aid trucks a day entered Gaza, supplying a population that was not hungry, had access to decent shelter, healthcare and clean water, had a functioning economy and also had a thriving agriculture sector that contributed to food availability. EU officials described the current aid increases as an improvement but said that they had been denied access to Gaza to verify the delivery of humanitarian aid and that there needed to be more entry points and distribution centres. Their proposal, if approved, would deny Israel access to one of the critical research areas within the Horizon programme, called the European Innovation Council (EIC), which specialises in disruptive technologies. Israel is one of the most successful member countries in the programme receiving about €200m (£173m) of the €900m allocated since 2021, with about €135 in grants and €65m in equity investment. There are currently 46 Israeli companies in the EIC programme, the EU said. The commission said in a statement: 'While Israel has announced a daily humanitarian pause in Gaza fighting and has met some of its commitments under the common understanding on humanitarian aid and access, the situation remains severe.' It added that the suspension would flow from its review of the trade association agreement with Israel, prompted by calls for a review of the agreement by the Netherlands backed by 17 countries in May. Officials said the partial suspension would be given legal effect through article 79 of the Euro-Mediterranean agreement if the action was deemed 'proportionate'. A seven-page proposal will be put to ambassadors from member states gathering in Brussels on Tuesday afternoon to discuss the EU-US trade deal. According to the rules the EU would need qualified majority, which means votes from about 15 member states to carry it through as long as they represent 65% of the bloc's population. This would almost certainly mean Germany would have to support the move. Senior EU officials said the mood at the ambassadors' meeting last week on the matter of humanitarian aid was 'heated' and there seemed to be a 'special urgency' about putting this proposal on the table. The UK was blocked from Horizon for three years after Brexit, rejoining in 2024, but officials said this was different to a suspension.
