Famine determined in parts of Gaza, 500,000 experiencing ‘catastrophic’ hunger 2025

Famine in Gaza: August 2025 Report Overview

In July 2025, the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) issued a dire alert confirming that famine conditions are unfolding in parts of the Gaza Strip, with approximately 500,000 people—nearly a quarter of the population—experiencing catastrophic hunger (IPC Phase 5). This assessment, backed by UN agencies and global hunger experts, highlights a worsening humanitarian crisis driven by conflict, aid blockades, and collapsed infrastructure. Below is a detailed analysis based on available sources, including web reports and X posts, addressing the situation, its causes, impacts, and broader implications.

Key Findings of the IPC Report

• Famine Confirmation:
• Areas Affected: Famine thresholds have been surpassed in Gaza City, with other parts of the Gaza Strip at imminent risk. Two of the three IPC famine criteria—food consumption deficits and acute malnutrition—have been met, with starvation-related deaths rising but not yet formally crossing the mortality threshold.
• Population Impact: Approximately 500,000 people (22–24% of Gaza’s 2.1 million population) are in IPC Phase 5 (Catastrophe), facing extreme food shortages, starvation, and exhaustion of coping mechanisms. The entire population (93–100%) is experiencing acute food insecurity (IPC Phase 3 or higher), with 1.95 million in Phase 3 (Crisis) or Phase 4 (Emergency).
• Malnutrition Crisis: Over 320,000 children under five are at risk of acute malnutrition, with 71,000 expected to require urgent treatment by March 2026, including 14,100 severe cases. In June 2025, 6,500 children were admitted for malnutrition treatment, the highest since the conflict’s escalation in October 2023.
• Mortality: At least 79 hunger-related deaths were reported in the week prior to July 29, 2025, including 24 children under five, surpassing the total from the previous 21 months. The Gaza Ministry of Health reported 74 malnutrition-related deaths in 2025, with 63 in July alone, likely an underestimate due to access constraints.

Causes of the Crisis

• Conflict and Blockade:
• Israel’s military campaign, intensified after Hamas’s October 7, 2023, attack, has restricted humanitarian aid since March 2, 2025, following the collapse of a January 2025 ceasefire. The blockade halted food, water, and medical supplies, with only 1,800 aid trucks entering since May 21, 2025—far below the 62,000 metric tons needed monthly.
• Relentless conflict, including airstrikes and ground operations, has displaced 90% of Gaza’s population, destroyed infrastructure (e.g., homes, hospitals, bakeries), and decimated local food production, with farming and fishing banned.
• Aid Distribution Challenges:
• The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), backed by Israel and the U.S., has distributed 89 million meals since May 2025, but these are not ready-to-eat, requiring scarce water and fuel. Over 1,000 aid-seekers have been killed near distribution sites, with Gaza’s Health Ministry citing sniper fire and chaotic first-come, first-served systems.
• UN agencies report that aid corridors hold 116,000 metric tons of food, enough for one million people for four months, but access restrictions and militarized zones hinder delivery.
• Economic Collapse:
• Food prices have skyrocketed, with wheat flour in Deir el-Balah and Khan Younis up 3,000% since February 2025. Families rely on insect-infested flour or canned food, with many going days without eating (39% of the population, per IPC).

Health and Humanitarian Impacts

• Malnutrition and Disease: Malnutrition has led to a surge in child hospitalizations, with 20,000 treated for acute malnutrition between April and mid-July 2025. Severe acute malnutrition (SAM) cases overwhelm the four remaining treatment centers, which are low on fuel and supplies. Pregnant and breastfeeding women face high risks, with 17,000 expected to need malnutrition treatment.
• Disease Outbreaks: Poor sanitation and lack of clean water have fueled diseases like cholera and polio (detected in July 2025), exacerbated by weakened immune systems. The WHO reported 73 children with SAM hospitalized in July, up from 39 in June.
• Mortality Trends: Non-trauma deaths are rising, with hospitals reporting emaciated patients dying on arrival. The IPC warns that the mortality threshold for famine may already be crossed, pending further data.

Responses and Statements

• UN and Aid Agencies:
• Cindy McCain (WFP Executive Director): “Waiting for official confirmation of famine to provide life-saving food aid is unconscionable. We need to flood Gaza with large-scale food aid, immediately and without obstruction.”
• Catherine Russell (UNICEF Executive Director): “Emaciated children and babies are dying from malnutrition in Gaza. We need immediate, safe, and unhindered humanitarian access.”
• Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus (WHO Director-General): “People are starving now. We do not need to wait for a famine declaration to act.”
• António Guterres (UN Secretary-General): Described Gaza as a “horror show” of starvation and destruction, calling for an immediate ceasefire and unfettered aid access.
• Israeli Response:
• Israeli officials, including spokesperson David Mencer, deny famine, claiming efforts to increase aid and blaming Hamas for stealing supplies. Israel reported 4,500 aid trucks entering since mid-May 2025, far below the 600 trucks daily needed.
• Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stated, “There is no policy of starvation in Gaza,” despite UN and ICJ warnings of deliberate starvation as a war crime.
• Hamas: Denies stealing aid and accuses Israel of using starvation as a weapon, echoing UN expert Michael Fakhri’s claims of genocide through hunger policies.

Broader Context and Critical Analysis

• Historical Precedent: The IPC’s July 2025 alert marks Gaza as facing the most severe hunger crisis this century, surpassing famines in Somalia (2011) and South Sudan (2017). Gaza’s 93% acute food insecurity rate is the highest ever recorded.
• Systemic Issues: Israel’s control over food imports, calculated at 2,279 calories per person daily (1.836 kg), has been criticized as a “diet” to avoid starvation without ensuring sufficiency. The blockade since March 2025, following a brief ceasefire, has reversed earlier aid gains, with only 15 bakeries operational by January 2024.
• Controversy Over Famine Declaration: The IPC has hesitated to formally declare famine due to incomplete mortality data, a point of contention. Experts like Fakhri argue that waiting for all thresholds is “unconscionable” given visible starvation.
• X Sentiment: Posts on X, such as @UN’s August 14, 2025, alert (@UN, 15:34 IST), emphasize the crisis’s urgency, calling for a ceasefire and aid access. Conversely, @IDF (August 12, 2025, 13:05 IST) claims no widespread malnutrition, citing a review, though this is contested by UN data and inconclusive without broader evidence.

Challenges and Recommendations

• Access Barriers: The blockade and militarized aid sites hinder distribution. The IPC and WHO call for immediate, unconditional ceasefire and unrestricted aid flow, including 62,000 metric tons of food monthly.
• Health System Collapse: Only 15% of nutrition treatment services are functional, and WHO’s supplies can treat only 500 children, a fraction of the need.
• Long-Term Risks: Malnutrition’s lifelong impacts—stunted growth, cognitive impairment—threaten Gaza’s next generation.

Conclusion

The IPC’s July 2025 report confirms famine in parts of Gaza, with 500,000 people facing catastrophic hunger amid a blockade, conflict, and collapsed infrastructure. While Israel denies starvation policies, UN experts and data point to deliberate restrictions, with 79 hunger-related deaths in a single week. Immediate action—ceasefire, aid access, and health system support—is critical to avert further deaths. Monitor updates via UN News, Reuters, or Al Jazeera for developments.

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