Israel hits back at Gaza famine report; blames UN for aid failure

Criticism comes amid heavy clashes in the Strip as fresh ceasefire talks loom

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Israel hit back on March 29 against a United Nations backed report that warned of imminent famine in Gaza, alleging the assessment contained inaccuracies and questionable sources.

The analysis released last week fuelled international concern by saying half of Gazans are feeling "catastrophic" hunger, and projecting a possible famine in the territory's north.

The Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) partnership estimated that 1.1 million people-half the population, according to UN are facing dire conditions.

UN humanitarian chief Martin Griffiths called for Israel to allow unfettered access for aid to the besieged Palestinian territory.

The Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (Cogat), the Israeli Defence Ministry body responsible for Palestinian civil affairs, said Israel "recognises the unfortunate impacts of the war on the civilian population of Gaza".

But it added that Israel does not operate food distribution in Gaza and accused UN agencies of being unable to handle the quantity of aid arriving daily.

"At any given moment, there are hundreds of trucks held up at the Gazan side of the Kerem Shalom crossing after having completely been processed by the authorities in Israel," Cogat said.

Israel has tense relations with some UN agencies, particularly the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East, which reported last week that Israel has barred it from making aid distributions in northern Gaza.