‘Just outside Gaza, stockpiled in warehouses, UNRWA has enough food for the entire population for over three months,' says agency
The UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) has raised the alarm Monday over severe food shortages, reporting that it is receiving “desperate messages of starvation” from civilians and even from its own staff on the ground.
“We are receiving desperate messages of starvation from #Gaza, including from our colleagues,” the agency said on X.
“Food prices have increased 40 fold,” the agency stressed.
It circulated a receipt showing that 1 kilogram (2.2 pounds) of sugar now costs $100, with flour, rice, and lentils ranging between $23 and $30 per kilogram -- totaling $183 for just four basic items.
Despite this escalating crisis, the agency confirmed that “just outside Gaza, stockpiled in warehouses, UNRWA has enough food for the entire population for over three months.”
“The suffering in Gaza is manmade and must be stopped,” the agency noted, calling for the immediate lifting of the siege and the safe and large-scale entry of humanitarian aid.
According to the Gaza Health Ministry, at least 18 people have died from starvation over the past 24 hours alone, highlighting the escalating humanitarian catastrophe as relentless bombardment and deprivation converge to push civilians beyond the brink.
Israel has killed nearly 59,000 Palestinians, most of them women and children, in the Gaza Strip since October 2023. The military campaign has devastated the enclave, collapsed the health system, and led to severe food shortages.
Last November, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.
Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on the enclave.
