Gaza is 'hungriest place on Earth' with everyone at risk of famine, says UN

Gaza is "the hungriest place on Earth", according to the UN, which said yesterday that the Palestinian territory's entire population was now at risk of famine.

- Lorenzo Tondo

Jens Laerke, a spokesperson for the UN humanitarian agency Ocha said the territory was "the only defined area - a country or defined territory within a country - where you have the entire population at risk of famine", he said.

"Gaza," he added, "is the hungriest place on Earth."

Laerke detailed the difficulties faced by the UN in delivering humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip. Nine hundred trucks of humanitarian aid had been authorised by Israel to enter the strip since the blockade was partially lifted, but so far only 600 trucks had been offloaded in Gaza, and a smaller number of shipments had then been picked up for distribution within the territory owing to security considerations, he said.

Laerke said the mission to deliver aid was "in an operational straitjacket that makes it one of the most obstructed aid operations not only in the world today, but in recent history".

Once truckloads enter Gaza, they are often "swarmed by desperate people", he said.

Daniel Meron, Israel's ambassador in Geneva, rejected the claim, saying UN agencies "cherrypick the facts to paint an alternative version of reality and demonise Israel".

He wrote on X: "In a desperate effort to remain relevant, they lambast the best efforts of Israel and its partners to facilitate delivery of humanitarian aid to the civilian population. UN feeds Hamas, we make sure aid gets to those in need."

Hamas said it was "thoroughly reviewing" Israel's response to a US proposal for a Gaza ceasefire deal, although one of the militant group's officials said the plan did not meet any of the Palestinians' "just and legitimate demands".