The United Nations’ World Food Programme has run out of food in Gaza, the organization said Friday, almost two months into Israel’s humanitarian blockade of the besieged enclave.
The agency says it delivered its final food stocks to kitchens in Gaza on Friday, and the kitchens are expected to deplete their supplies in the coming days.
“For weeks, hot meal kitchens have been the only consistent source of food assistance for people in Gaza,” the World Food Programme (WFP) said in a statement. “Despite reaching just half the population with only 25% of daily food needs, they have provided a critical lifeline.”
Israel imposed a humanitarian blockade of Gaza on March 2, cutting off food, medical supplies, and other aid to the more than 2 million Palestinians who live in the territory. Israel says the blockade, along with the military’s expansion of its bombardment of Gaza, is intended to pressure Hamas to accept a US-backed ceasefire proposal.
“If we do not see progress in the return of the hostages, we will expand our activity into a more intense and significant operation,” said Israel Defense Forces (IDF) Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir during a visit to Gaza Thursday.
The US has made clear that it will not push Israel to allow in more humanitarian aid. On Monday, Mike Hucakbee, the new US Ambassador to Israel, said a UN World Health Organization official asked him to put pressure on Israel to open the borders.
“How about we put the pressure where it really belongs – on Hamas,” Huckabee said on social media.
The blockade has worsened Gaza’s already dire humanitarian situation, with the Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS) warning earlier this month of imminent famine. The PRCS said most essential supplies, such as flour, sugar, and cooking oil, had run out of Gaza’s markets.
More than 116,000 metric tons of food is waiting at aid corridors outside of Gaza, ready to be brought in by WFP and its partners, the organization said. The supplies – which are enough to feed one million people for up to four months, WFP said – can enter as soon as the borders reopen.
“The situation inside the Gaza Strip has once again reached a breaking point: people are running out of ways to cope, and the fragile gains made during the short ceasefire have unravelled,” WFP said.