One in five in Gaza facing starvation amid Israel's blockade, experts warn

Gaza is at "critical risk of famine", food security experts have warned, 10 weeks after Israel imposed a blockade on the devastated Palestinian territory, cutting off all supplies including food, medicine, shelter and fuel.

- Jason Burke

An Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) report yesterday said there had been a "major deterioration" in the food situation in Gaza since its last assessment in October 2024 and that Palestinians living there faced "a critical risk of famine".

The IPC, a consortium of experts that assesses global famine risk, said: "Goods indispensable for people's survival are either depleted or expected to run out in the coming weeks. The entire population is facing high levels of acute food insecurity, with half a million people - one in five - facing starvation."

Israel imposed its strict blockade in early March, after the end of the first phase of a supposed three-phase ceasefire. Just over two weeks later, a new wave of attacks by the Israeli military definitively ended the truce.

Aid workers in Gaza told the Guardian prices for essentials had risen further in recent days, warehouses were empty and humanitarian teams treating malnourished children were forced to divide rations designed for one between two patients to give both a chance of survival.