Famine confirmed in Gaza, UN urges immediate ceasefire

Famine has been officially confirmed in the Gaza Strip for the first time, with over half a million people facing catastrophic levels of food insecurity as widespread hunger, acute malnutrition, and starvation-related deaths surge, according to a new analysis released Aug. 22 by the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC).

The grim assessment was supported by four United Nations agencies—the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), UNICEF, the World Food Programme (WFP), and the World Health Organization (WHO)—which issued an urgent joint appeal for an immediate ceasefire and full humanitarian access to save lives and curb the deepening crisis.

“People in Gaza have exhausted every possible means of survival,” said FAO Director-General QU Dongyu. “Access to food is not a privilege—it is a basic human right.”

As of September, more than 640,000 people are projected to be in IPC Phase 5 (Catastrophe), with another 1.14 million in Emergency (IPC Phase 4) and 396,000 in Crisis (IPC Phase 3) conditions.

Famine conditions, currently present in Gaza Governorate, are expected to spread rapidly to Deir Al Balah and Khan Younis in the coming weeks.

Children are among the hardest hit. In July alone, over 12,000 children were identified as acutely malnourished—the highest monthly figure ever recorded in Gaza and a sixfold increase since January.

Nearly one in four of these children suffer from severe acute malnutrition (SAM), the deadliest form, posing both short- and long-term health risks.

“Famine is now a grim reality for children in Gaza Governorate,” said UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell. “Children with wasted bodies, too weak to cry or eat; babies dying from hunger and preventable disease… There is no time to lose.”

According to WHO, nearly one in five babies are being born underweight or prematurely, while levels of illness among children—including diarrhoea, fever, and skin infections—have skyrocketed due to weakened immunity and poor living conditions.

WHO Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus emphasized that the crisis has reached an intolerable point.

“A ceasefire is an absolute and moral imperative now,” he said. “Gaza must be urgently supplied with food and medicines to save lives and begin the process of reversing malnutrition.”

The IPC classifies famine when three thresholds are breached: extreme food deprivation, acute malnutrition, and death from starvation.

The new analysis, based on reasonable evidence, confirms these criteria have now been met in parts of Gaza.

Food access remains severely restricted. In July, the number of households reporting extreme hunger more than tripled in Gaza City compared to May.

More than one in three people reported going days without eating, with adults often skipping meals so children can eat.

Cindy McCain, Executive Director of WFP, said warnings had long been evident.

“What’s urgently needed now is a surge of aid, safer conditions, and proven distribution systems to reach those most in need—wherever they are,” McCain said. “Full humanitarian access and a ceasefire now are critical to save lives.”

Since July, food and aid deliveries to Gaza have increased slightly but remain vastly insufficient.

Most croplands—98 percent—are either damaged or inaccessible, crippling local food production.

UN trucks are often looted due to desperation, and essential services such as fuel, water, and sanitation are on the brink of collapse.

Cash remains critically scarce, while soaring food prices and damaged markets have left families unable to secure basic necessities.

The health system is overwhelmed, with hospitals lacking essential supplies and health workers operating under extreme exhaustion.

The UN agencies jointly called for immediate and sustained humanitarian access, restoration of commercial flows, fuel, and cooking gas, and rehabilitation of the health and food systems.

They emphasized that peace is essential to reverse the escalating hunger crisis and prevent further deaths.

“Famine warnings have been clear for months,” said McCain. “Now famine is here.”