A nearly two-month-long siege by Israel has crippled Gaza’s humanitarian aid system, leaving hundreds of thousands of Palestinians struggling to feed their children.
The World Food Programme (WFP) has announced its warehouses are bare, and soup kitchens are severely rationing their last stocks. The price of basic items like flour has skyrocketed, with a simple bag costing the equivalent of $100.
Desperate residents have stormed United Nations schools and warehouses in search of food, but armed men have tried to repel them. Cases of acute child malnutrition are rapidly rising, with nearly 3,700 children diagnosed last month – an 82% increase from February.
Five-year-old Usama al-Raqab has lost 8 pounds in the past month due to a lack of essential food items. His mother says he can barely walk and suffers from pre-existing medical conditions that require a diet rich in fats and proteins.
Aid organizations, including the WFP, are calling on Israel to lift its blockade to allow aid into Gaza. The UN has nearly 3,000 trucks filled with aid waiting to cross into Gaza, but no indication of action is expected from Israel.
The situation is dire, with many Palestinians feeling that death is easier than their current life. “We are starving, tired, and weary of this life,” says an elderly woman at a soup kitchen in al-Nuseirat. “There is no food, no nothing. Death is easier than this life.”
Source: https://edition.cnn.com/2025/04/30/middleeast/gaza-edges-closer-to-famine-amid-israels-total-blockade-intl