By Ono Yima
The risk of famine in Gaza is escalating rapidly, driven by the deliberate and prolonged blockade of humanitarian aid, including life-saving food and medical supplies. The World Health Organization (WHO) warns that the entire 2.1 million population of Gaza is experiencing critical food shortages, with nearly half a million people now facing catastrophic levels of hunger, starvation, and illness.
In a new food security analysis released by the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC), of which WHO is a partner, the humanitarian outlook for Gaza is described as one of the world’s worst unfolding hunger crises.
“We do not need to wait for a declaration of famine in Gaza to know that people are already starving, sick and dying, while food and medicines are minutes away across the border,” said WHO Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. “Today’s report shows that without immediate access to food and essential supplies, the situation will continue to deteriorate, causing more deaths and descent into famine.”
While a formal declaration of famine has not yet been made, the IPC report indicates that three-quarters of Gaza’s population are enduring “Emergency” or “Catastrophic” food deprivation – the two most severe levels on its five-tier scale. Since the full blockade began on March 2, 2025, 57 children have reportedly died from malnutrition-related complications, with the number expected to rise.
Health and nutrition experts warn that nearly 71,000 children under five are likely to become acutely malnourished over the next eleven months unless access to aid is restored. Malnutrition, especially among children, weakens the immune system and increases the risk of death from otherwise preventable diseases such as diarrhoea, pneumonia, and measles.
The crisis also endangers pregnant and breastfeeding mothers. The IPC estimates nearly 17,000 women in Gaza could require treatment for acute malnutrition in the coming months. Malnourished mothers struggle to produce breastmilk, putting infants under six months at serious risk. With clean water in scarce supply, breastmilk is often the only protection against hunger and disease for infants.
The long-term consequences are severe. Malnutrition can cause stunted growth, cognitive delays, and chronic health issues, effectively crippling an entire generation’s future. The WHO has also expressed grave concern over the limited operational capacity of its malnutrition treatment centres. Supplies are only sufficient to treat 500 children, a fraction of the actual need. Stockpiles of essential medicines and trauma care supplies are dwindling and cannot be replenished due to access restrictions.
Despite a recent Israeli plan to distribute aid through selected sites across Gaza, WHO says the initiative falls far short of meeting urgent humanitarian needs. “A well-established and proven humanitarian coordination system, led by the UN and its partners, is already in place and must be allowed to function fully,” the agency stated, urging full respect for the global humanitarian principles of humanity, impartiality, independence, and neutrality.
Supplies critical for survival — food, medicine, clean water, and maternal counselling services — remain stranded just outside Gaza’s borders, awaiting clearance. WHO reiterated its call for the protection of health care, the lifting of the aid blockade, the release of all hostages, and the establishment of a ceasefire that could pave the way for lasting peace.
“That children are dying of hunger while relief convoys wait at the gates of Gaza is heartbreaking,” said an anonymous humanitarian observer. “This is not just a crisis—it is a failure of humanity to act.”