For the first time, UN declares famine in Gaza, with 500,000 people trapped

A new Integrated Food Security Phase Classification report declared on Aug 22 that more than 500,000 people in Gaza are trapped in famine, after months of warning that famine was underway in the Palestinian strip occupied and attacked by Israeli forces.

The United Nations-backed scale also said that famine conditions are projected to spread from Gaza Governorate to Deir Al Balah and Khan Younis Governorates in the coming weeks and comes at a time the Israeli government announces it was pushing through with taking full control of Gaza City.

The Famine Review Committee noted that as this famine "is entirely man-made, it can be halted and reversed". But the Israeli government responded by denying any famine in Gaza.

There should be no doubt in anyone's mind that an immediate, at-scale response is needed. Any further delay — even by days — will result in a totally unacceptable escalation of famine-related mortality," the report noted. The time for debate and hesitation has passed; starvation is present and is rapidly spreading.

Further, it said that if a ceasefire is not implemented to allow humanitarian aid to reach everyone in the Gaza Strip, and if essential food supplies and basic health, nutrition, and hygiene services are not restored immediately, avoidable deaths will increase exponentially.

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres lamented the latest report, calling for more action to end the suffering in the besieged enclave.

In a post on X, Guterres said that just when it seemed that there were no words left to "describe the living hell in Gaza, a new one has been added: famine".

"No more excuses. The time for action is not tomorrow — it is now. We need an immediate ceasefire, the immediate release of all hostages and full, unfettered humanitarian access," Guterres said.

He said it was "not a mystery", but a "man-made disaster, a moral indictment and a failure of humanity itself. Famine is not only about food; it is the deliberate collapse of the systems needed for human survival.

"People are starving. Children are dying. And those with the duty to act are failing. As the occupying power, Israel has unequivocal obligations under international law — including the duty of ensuring food and medical supplies of the population. We cannot allow this situation to continue with impunity," Guterres said.

However, the Foreign Ministry of Israel rejected the IPC, saying it published a "tailor-made" fabricated report "to fit Hamas's fake campaign".

"The entire IPC document is based on Hamas lies laundered through organizations with vested interests. There is no famine in Gaza," it said on Aug 22.

This IPC report marks the fifth time the Famine Review Committee has been called to review an analysis on the acute food security and nutrition situation in the Gaza Strip, the findings noted.

It also noted that never before has the committee had to return "so many times to the same crisis" — a stark reflection of how suffering has not only persisted but intensified — and spread until famine has begun to emerge.

Following the previous IPC analysis in May 2025, which projected nearly 500,000 individuals, 22 percent of the total population, in IPC Phase 5 (Catastrophe), an IPC Alert was issued on July 29, highlighting the continued deterioration of food security, nutrition, and health in populations across the Gaza Strip.

A new analysis was conducted by a multi-agency analysis team between July 30 and Aug 4, which identified the possible existence of famine conditions and therefore required a review by the FRC.

In a joint press release the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, UNICEF, the United Nations World Food Programme and the World Health Organization have collectively and consistently highlighted the extreme urgency for an immediate and full-scale humanitarian response given the escalating hunger-related deaths, rapidly worsening levels of acute malnutrition and plummeting levels of food consumption.

The press release also noted that by the end of September, more than 640,000 people will face catastrophic levels of food insecurity — classified as IPC Phase 5 — across the Gaza Strip. An additional 1.14 million people in the territory will be in emergency (IPC Phase 4) and a further 396,000 people in crisis (IPC Phase 3) conditions.

Malnutrition among children in Gaza is accelerating at a catastrophic pace. In July alone, more than 12 000 children were identified as "acutely malnourished", which it noted was the highest monthly figure ever recorded and a six-fold increase since the start of the year.

Since the last IPC Analysis in May, the number of children expected to be at severe risk of death from malnutrition by the end of June 2026 has tripled from 14,100 to 43,400.