Famine confirmed in Gaza as UN agencies call for urgent ceasefire

Famine confirmed in Gaza as UN agencies demand immediate ceasefire and humanitarian access

For the first time in the Middle East, famine has been officially confirmed in Gaza, leaving more than half a million people facing starvation, according to a new Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) analysis. The report highlights that famine conditions, already entrenched in Gaza Governorate, are projected to spread rapidly to Deir Al Balah and Khan Younis in the coming weeks.

The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), World Food Programme (WFP) and World Health Organization (WHO) reiterated their urgent appeal for an immediate ceasefire and full humanitarian access to prevent further deaths from hunger and malnutrition.

Catastrophic hunger and malnutrition levels

By the end of September, more than 640,000 people in Gaza are expected to face catastrophic food insecurity (IPC Phase 5), while 1.14 million will be in emergency conditions (IPC Phase 4), and nearly 400,000 will be in crisis (IPC Phase 3). In North Gaza, conditions are feared to be equally severe, though insufficient data has prevented classification.

Malnutrition among children is accelerating at an alarming pace. In July alone, over 12,000 children were identified as acutely malnourished — the highest figure ever recorded in a single month. Nearly one in four were suffering from severe acute malnutrition, the deadliest form, leaving them at imminent risk of death. One in five babies in Gaza is now being born prematurely or underweight.

Pregnant and breastfeeding women face unprecedented risks, with more than 55,000 expected to experience life-threatening malnutrition by mid-2026.

Collapse of food and health systems

The near-total destruction of Gaza’s agricultural sector — with 98 percent of cropland damaged or inaccessible — has decimated local food production. Nine out of ten people have been displaced, while aid convoys face looting and severe restrictions, leading to skyrocketing food prices and widespread hunger.

Gaza’s health system is on the brink of collapse, with hospitals overwhelmed and lacking essential medicines, supplies, clean water, and fuel. Multi-drug resistant infections are rising, while diarrhoea, respiratory infections, and other preventable diseases are increasingly fatal for malnourished children.

UN agencies urge urgent action

UN leaders stressed that famine must be stopped at all costs.

• FAO Director-General QU Dongyu said: “Access to food is not a privilege – it is a basic human right. Our priority must now be safe and sustained access for large-scale food assistance.”
• WFP Executive Director Cindy McCain warned: “What’s urgently needed now is a surge of aid, safer conditions, and proven distribution systems to reach those most in need.”
• UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell stated: “Children with wasted bodies, too weak to cry or eat, are dying from hunger and preventable disease. Without a ceasefire, more children will die.”
• WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus emphasized: “A ceasefire is a moral imperative. Gaza must urgently be supplied with food and medicines to save lives.”

The path forward

The IPC confirms famine thresholds have been breached in Gaza: extreme food deprivation, acute malnutrition, and starvation-related deaths. The agencies stressed that only a sustained ceasefire, safe humanitarian corridors, and restoration of essential services can halt the catastrophe.

The crisis in Gaza now stands as one of the most severe humanitarian emergencies in recent history, underscoring the urgent need for collective international action to save lives.

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