Gaza: The Impacts of Famine Will Last Generations
Global leaders and policymakers continue to hesitate on the question of famine in Gaza.
Some have called Gaza’s hunger crisis a famine—notably, the heads of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and the UN World Food Programme, as well as the International Criminal Court (ICC)—while others continue to hedge, and no formal declaration of famine has been made in Gaza. Though the technical determination of famine is important, it also distracts from the ultimate point—whether famine is declared in Gaza or not, the current hunger and malnutrition crises will affect Gazans for generations.
Q1: What is the current state of food security in Gaza?
A1: Conditions of hunger and safety continue to deteriorate across Gazan communities. In its latest report, published on May 31, 2024, the U.S.-based Famine Early Warning Systems Network (FEWS NET) stated that it is possible that famine began in northern Gaza in April of this year. FEWS NET projected that famine will persist through at least July without significant changes in the delivery of food assistance. This analysis does not amount to a formal famine declaration, though several top policymakers have stated that famine is present in Gaza, including USAID administrator Samantha Power, director of the UN World Food Programme Cindy McCain, and ICC prosecutor Karim A.A. Khan. The last Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) report on Gaza drew a similar conclusion, and a new IPC report is expected imminently.
Just nine months after the October 7 Hamas attack on Israel and the declaration of the “complete siege” of Gaza, the Palestinian death toll in Gaza has surpassed 37,000 people. The deliberate curtailment of food, water, energy, and humanitarian assistance entering Gaza leaves more than 1.1 million people facing catastrophic living conditions. With the recent incursion into Rafah, about 1 million Palestinians—many of whom had initially fled south to Rafah throughout the early stages of the conflict—must continue to seek safety elsewhere out of fear for their well-being and severe disruption to humanitarian assistance. Previously, the Rafah and Kerem Shalom Crossings in southern Gaza served as the main access points for the flow of commercial and humanitarian supplies into the region. However, since the start of military operations in Rafah in early May, aid entering through southern crossings has dropped to some of the lowest levels seen throughout the war, and the United Nations assesses that aid entering all of Gaza has declined by two-thirds. Aid facilities working in Rafah have also been forced to shutter their operations. The United Nations, for example, suspended food distribution in Rafah because of supply shortages and increasing security concerns.
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