UN warns ‘high risk of famine’ in Gaza

The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) warned on Tuesday that Gaza residents, especially women and children, are at risk of famine if food supplies are halted.

The program stated that it delivered food to 121,161 people in Gaza since Friday when a four-day truce between Israel and Hamas began.

On Tuesday, the truce was extended for an additional two days.

Corinne Fleischer, the director of the program for the Middle East region, said, "Thanks to the truce, our teams have started working on the ground and entered areas we have not reached for a long time. What we see is catastrophic."

The WFP estimates that residents of Gaza, particularly women and children, are at risk of famine if the program cannot secure continuous access to food.

The agency stated that six days are "not sufficient to bring about any tangible change" and called for ensuring "regular and continuous" supplies to the sector.

In Gaza, the WFP managed to reach 759,082 people by providing food supplies and vouchers since the beginning of the crisis.

The truce halted the fighting that began on October 7 when Hamas fighters infiltrated Israel's borders in an unprecedented attack, resulting in the death of 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and the abduction of dozens, according to Israeli officials.

The Israeli ground and air strikes in response to the attack led to the death of approximately 15,000 people, mostly civilians, according to the Hamas government in the sector.

AFP