Gaza Hunger Crisis: UN Reports 1 in 5 Children Malnourished
UNRWA and WHO report worsening famine in Gaza, with mass malnutrition, food shortages, and rising child deaths as aid remains restricted.

 UN: Gaza’s Hunger Crisis Reaches Unprecedented Levels

According to the UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA), one in five children in Gaza City is now suffering from malnutrition, with the numbers rising daily. Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini described the situation as so severe that people are becoming “walking corpses.”

More than 100 aid organizations and human rights groups have issued urgent warnings about a looming mass starvation in Gaza, urging immediate global intervention.

Deaths from Hunger — Most Are Children

UNRWA reports that over 100 people — mostly children — have died of hunger, as access to humanitarian aid remains severely restricted.

“Most children our teams are seeing are emaciated, weak, and at high risk of dying,” Lazzarini said, pleading for unrestricted humanitarian access.

 Israel’s Position and Ongoing Aid Restrictions

Israel, which controls entry into Gaza, denies enforcing a siege and blames Hamas for the humanitarian crisis. Israeli officials say aid is being provided “according to international law,” and that troops do not intentionally target civilians near aid convoys.

However, the World Health Organization (WHO) contradicted that claim, stating Gaza’s population is “starving,” with Director-General Dr. Tedros Ghebreyesus calling it “mass starvation — and it’s man-made.”

 Daily Struggles on the Ground

Gazans describe an increasingly desperate reality:

• Food prices are unaffordable, and markets are often empty.

• Flour is scarce, with many selling jewelry just to afford bread.

• Children rummage through trash for food scraps.

• Families live in tents with no electricity or clean water.

“We are not alive. We are dead,” said Abu Alaa, a market seller. “We are pleading with the world to save us.”

 Real Stories: Children at Risk

• Tahani Shehada, an aid worker, says her eight-month-old son has never tasted fruit.

• Najah, a 19-year-old widow, is afraid to go near aid centers. “We’ll be shot,” she says.

• Walaa Fathi, eight months pregnant, fears giving birth in a famine zone: “I hope the baby stays in my womb.”

 Deaths While Seeking Aid

According to the UN Human Rights Office:

• Over 1,000 Palestinians have died while trying to access aid in the past two months.

• 766 were killed near distribution sites run by the U.S.-Israeli Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF).

• 288 more died near UN and NGO convoys.

Israel and GHF reject these numbers, calling them unreliable, and accuse Hamas of inciting chaos at aid sites.

One doctor in Gaza said: “We’re not near famine — we are living it now.”

 Summary: Humanitarian Catastrophe Unfolding

With children dying of hunger, aid convoys under attack, and basic survival out of reach for many, Gaza is facing a man-made humanitarian disaster. The UN, WHO, and hundreds of global organizations are demanding immediate and unrestricted aid access before more lives are lost.