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A report released by the UN-backed Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) program on Aug. 22 found that a “famine is currently occurring in Gaza Governorate,” the district covering Gaza City, and is “rapidly spreading” under seige conditions imposed by Israel. Multiple international aid agencies and organizations have renewed their calls for an immediate ceasefire to facilitate an “unimpeded, large-scale humanitarian response that can save lives.”

The IPC defines famine as “a situation in which at least one in five households has an extreme lack of food and face starvation and destitution, resulting in extremely critical levels of malnutrition and death.” According to the findings, 30% of households in Gaza governorate are experiencing extreme food shortages, along with 25% in Deir al-Balah and 20% in Khan Younis. Rafah was not included in the analysis as it is “largely depopulated.” North Gaza governorate, while believed to be potentially worse than Gaza, has not been classified due to difficulties in assessing the population status.

The famine is projected to quickly spread to more than 640,000 people in the coming weeks, with “exponential increases in catastrophic loss of life and mass suffering.” The report added that “[c]hildren, the elderly, and those with chronic diseases” will be the first to die as a result of malnutrition.

The IPC described the famine as “entirely man-made,” and said that it could be “halted and reversed.” The report attributed the increasing levels of hunger to three main factors: “[T]he destruction of domestic food production systems, import limitations, and displacement of populations away from available food sources or production systems.” While there have been deliveries from the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), a joint US-Israel organization, they “do not meet the criteria to be classified as humanitarian assistance,” according to the IPC. International non-governmental organizations have decried restrictions on humanitarian aid from entering Gaza, noting numerous reports of civilians being killed while attempting to access food at GHF sites.

The report called on senior decision makers to “act without delay to put in place an immediate humanitarian response” and “exert maximum pressure to achieve a ceasefire.” These calls have been echoed by multiple organizations including UNICEF, the World Food Programme, the Food and Agriculture Organization, and the World Health Organization. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres stated: “Israel has unequivocal obligations under international law—including the duty of ensuring food and medical supplies of the population.”

Israel’s Foreign Ministry denounced the report, saying that the “IPC changed its own global standard, cutting the 30% threshold to 15% for this report only…solely to serve Hamas’s fake campaign.” It further stated that “there is no famine in Gaza.”

The IPC rejected this accusation, and said that it used long-established standards that have been used previously in similar situations. Since it was established in 2004, the IPC has declared areas to be experiencing famine four times—in Somalia in 2011, in South Sudan in 2017 and 2020, and in Sudan in 2024.

Human rights organizations have previously accused Israel of a “deliberate policy” of starvation as a weapon of war. Under Additional Protocol II to the Geneva Convention, Article 14, “Starvation of civilians as a method of combat is prohibited.”

The IPC is a partnership of 21 international agencies and NGOs which aims to “determine the severity and extent of acute and chronic food insecurity and acute malnutrition situations” globally. The report is the fifth IPC analysis to be conducted in Gaza, which is the most of any crisis which the IPC has reviewed. It also marks the first time a famine has been confirmed in the Middle East.

From JURIST, Aug. 23. Used with permission. Internal links added.

The IPC finding will loan credence to claims of Israel’s genocidal intent in Gaza.

Photo: Jaber Jehad Badwan via Wikimedia Commons