Security Council hears Gaza famine 'almost inevitable' unless aid is massively scaled up

The deputy head of UN aid coordination told ambassadors that famine is "almost inevitable" unless aid can be scaled up immediately.

That's it from the Security Council this Tuesday when the dire aid situation and increasing  threat of famine was front and centre during an impassioned discussion in the chamber, led off by a detailed UN humanitarian update via videolink.

Plans to open more border crossings: Israel

Israel’s Deputy Permanent Representative, Brett Jonathan Miller, said his delegation is committed to improving humanitarian assistance in Gaza, easing the entry of aid at the Kerem Shalom and Rafah crossings, with further border crossing openings also under discussion.

Indeed, there is “no limit” to the amount of aid that can be sent to the population of Gaza, he said, noting that most aid requests are approved.

“These are the facts; no one can claim otherwise,” he said, adding that 20 bakeries in Gaza now produce more than two million pita breads a day.

Claims made to the contrary inside the Council Chamber are just attempts to propagate Hamas lies and to distract attention away from the inability to efficiently distribute aid, he continued.

Israel is not holding up the trucks waiting at the borders, he said, adding that, clearly, the delays in aid delivery are the UN’s fault. 

In this vein, he said the problem of aid diversion in Gaza cannot be ignored. For its part, Israel will continue to demand the release of all hostages, he said, calling on the Security Council to do everything in its power to ensure their safety and wellbeing.

Famine already underway: Palestine

Permanent Observer of the State of Palestine Riyad Mansour told ambassadors that in reality, a famine is underway in Gaza and getting worse every day that Israel carries on its “criminal aggression”.

"We must stop for a moment and consider what this truly means," he said.

“What it means to forage for food in the rubble, sand and trash, to eat animal feed or food ravaged by rats.”

He said Israel was the architect of this human and humanitarian catastrophe, which it has purposely designed to collectively punish Gaza’s 2.3 million Palestinians. 

That this catastrophic famine and genocide has been allowed to happen at all and continue for this long "brings shame on all of us, not least this Security Council", Mr. Mansour added.

Israel’s weaponization of food to punish the Palestinian people is not a secret. It was declared months ago, in October 2023 by the highest-ranking Israeli Government and military officials, some of whom publicly stated that such policies would hasten the decline of humanitarian conditions and provoke a mass exodus from Gaza or a so-called “voluntary migration” of this “demographic threat”.

This Council must uphold its responsibilities, he said. 

Rectifying the current abhorrent situation requires three immediate steps: a ceasefire now to halt the Israeli aggression; the unimpeded, accelerated delivery of humanitarian aid at scale throughout all of Gaza; and accountability measures for all the war crimes and crimes against humanity perpetrated by Israel. 

Record levels of child malnutrition: WFP

Carl Skau, World Food Programme (WFP) Deputy Executive Director, said the Famine Review Committee has warned of a real prospect of famine by May, with 500,000 people at risk if the threat is allowed to materialize. Today, food aid is required by almost the entire population of 2.2 million people.

“Gaza is seeing the worst level of child malnutrition anywhere in the world,” he said. One child in every six under the age of two is acutely malnourished.

WFP is ready to swiftly expand and scale up operations if there is a ceasefire agreement. Immediate action is required to enable a huge increase in the volume of food and other humanitarian supplies.

“We need a safe and functioning operating environment for humanitarian staff, the port of Ashdod and the Karni crossing to be open, a working humanitarian notification system and a stable communications network,” he said.

“If nothing changes, a famine is imminent in northern Gaza. Meanwhile, in the south of Gaza, WFP and partners are on the ground, delivering food as it comes to shelters, to makeshift camps, and to shops.

“But, we are unable to provide regular or sufficient food to people who badly need it, he said. “The fact remains that without safe and greatly expanded access, aid workers cannot mount a relief operation at the scale required to reverse the severe humanitarian crisis now gripping Gaza.

“It is essential we avert a famine, and this requires much more than just food supplies. Basic services must also be restored, including health services, electricity networks and water and sanitation pipelines," he said, adding that UNWRA is the only organization with the ability to oversee and manage this vital infrastructure in Gaza.

Mass destruction of food system: FAO

Maurizio Martina, Deputy Director General of FAO, painted a grim landscape in Gaza at a time when at least 378,000 of its residents are experiencing the most severe phase of acute food insecurity.

“The key findings are troubling,” he warned, providing a sample of the severe impact of the war, from a decimated fishing sector, which provided livelihoods for over 100,000 Gazans, to the widespread death of livestock from airstrikes or the lack of water and fodder.

As of 15 February, 46.2 per cent of all cropland was assessed to be damaged, he said, emphasizing that agricultural infrastructure has been devastated, with the highest levels of destruction including sheep and dairy farms.

Over one quarter of wells had been destroyed, with destruction most significant in north Gaza and Gaza City, and 339 hectares of greenhouses had been destroyed, most severely in Gaza City, north Gaza and Khan Younis. The harvest of olives and citrus fruits, which provides an important source of income, has been heavily impacted by the hostilities.

Meanwhile, restrictions on aid deliveries had rendered impossible meaningful humanitarian operations, he said.

Restore humanitarian space

A cessation of hostilities and restoration of humanitarian space to deliver multisectoral assistance and restore services are “essential first steps in eliminating a risk of famine”, Mr. Martina said.

“A critical priority is to restore safe and sustained humanitarian access throughout the Gaza Strip and to all those in need of lifesaving assistance,” he said.

In addition, basic services must be restored, including cross-border water pipelines, telecommunications, electricity distribution and health facilities, he said.

“All parties must respect their obligations under international humanitarian and human rights law and protect civilians,” Mr. Martina said, adding that an immediate ceasefire and peace are a prerequisite for food security.

Concluding his briefing, OCHA's Mr. Rajasingham said: "Food security experts warn of complete agricultural collapse in northern Gaza by May if conditions persist, with fields and productive assets damaged, destroyed or inaccessible. Many have had little choice but to abandon productive farmland due to evacuation orders and repeated displacement.”

The hostilities have caused widespread shortages, heavy damage to water infrastructure and scarcity of products and even opportunities to fish alongside rising hunger and the looming risk of famine, he said, calling for solutions to scale up humanitarian aid deliveries.

Famine is 'almost inevitable' without action

“The stark reality, however, is that a response at the level required will be impossible without immediate and concerted action by the parties, the Security Council, other Member States and the wider international community,” he said, adding that the white note submitted to members sets out recommendations for this action.

At this stage, very little will be possible while hostilities continue and while there is a risk that they will spread into the overcrowded areas in the south of Gaza, he said, reiterating the call for a ceasefire.

“If nothing is done, we fear widespread famine in Gaza is almost inevitable and the conflict will have many more victims,” he said.

Guyana hold the presidency of the Security Council for February and their Permanent Representative Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett has just gavelled the meeting open. 

‘Complete agricultural collapse’ looms by May in northern Gaza

OCHA deputy chief Ramesh Rajasingham told ambassadors the situation in Gaza was grave with practically the entire population left to rely on “woefully inadequate humanitarian food assistance to survive.”

He said there was every chance, the situation would simply get worse.

“Military operations, insecurity and extensive restrictions on the entry and delivery of essential goods have decimated food production and agriculture,” he added. 

The UN humanitarian affairs coordination office, OCHA, said in information formally submitted on 22 February to ambassadors – known as a white note – that at least 576,000 people were “facing catastrophic levels of deprivation and starvation” across Gaza.

The briefing is happening under the Council’s agenda item on protecting civilians in armed conflict. The Deputy Director of OCHA is due to speak alongside the deputy heads of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and World Food Programme (WFP).

Guyana and Switzerland, who are the Council focal points on conflict and hunger, called for the meeting along with Algeria and Slovenia in response to the alarm raised by OCHA.

The official system used by the UN and many other relief agencies to measure food insecurity (the IPC classification index) warned that the entire 2.3 million population of Gaza would be facing acute levels of insecurity by this month – the highest share ever recorded.

Famine risk, wasting among children

The white note says at least 576,000 are close to famine, adding that the figures are conservative, and the risk of famine is growing every day that the war and obstacles to humanitarian relief continue.

The Global Nutrition Cluster reported on 18 February that around one in six children under age two are now experiencing wasting, the most life-threatening form of malnutrition.

Steps towards a ceasefire

Intense fighting continues between Israeli forces and Palestinian militants. Amid repeated calls to end the hostilities, negotiations are continuing between the warring parties, overseen by Qatar, which are aimed at securing a deal for a ceasefire and sequenced release of more hostages still being held in Gaza, according to news reports.

Meanwhile at UN Headquarters, it is being reported that the United States has circulated a revised draft resolution to Security Council members calling for a temporary ceasefire in Gaza along with hostage releases as soon as possible and for Israel to refrain from any invasion of Rafah “under current circumstances”.

The US vetoed the last resolution put forward by Algeria demanding an immediate humanitarian ceasefire on 20 February, arguing it would destabilize substantial talks going on in Qatar,

Lifesaving aid barriers

Just last week, the UN’s Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process briefed the Council, while medical charity Médecins Sans Frontières reported that a pattern of attacks by Israeli forces against hospitals and other civilian buildings, together with humanitarian personnel and convoys, was “either intentional or indicative of reckless incompetence”.

Briefing reporters in New York ahead of the Security Council meeting, UN Spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric said there were multiple factors holding up the aid effort, primarily the lack of ceasefire, “a lack of respect for international law…a breakdown of law and order in Gaza” and a simple lack of trucks to move vital supplies.

“There has been very little, if any, effective coordination with Israeli authorities on deconfliction”, and the ability to move convoys to the north, he added.

Find our latest story on the humanitarian effort here.