What is famine, and why is Gaza at risk of reaching it soon??

 News|Israel-Palestine conflict

What is famine, and why is Gaza at

 risk of reaching it soon?

One in five in Gaza face famine as Israel’s blockade continues. What does starvation do to the human body?

Half a million people in the Gaza Strip, or one in five Palestinians, are facing starvation.

The entire rest of the population is suffering from high levels of acute food insecurity, according to a recent report by the UN’s Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC).

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“The risk of famine in the Gaza Strip is not just possible – it is increasingly likely,” the IPC says.

For more than 73 days, Israel has blocked all food, water, and medicine from entering Gaza, creating a man-made crisis, with the IPC warning that famine could be declared any time between now and September.

What is famine and when is it reached?

Famine is the worst level of hunger, where people face severe food shortages, widespread malnutrition, and high levels of death due to starvation.

According to the UN’s criteria, famine is declared when:

• At least 20 percent (one-fifth) of households face extreme food shortages
• More than 30 percent of children suffer from acute malnutrition
• At least two out of every 10,000 people or four out of every 10,000 children die each day from starvation or hunger-related causes.

• Famine is not just about hunger; it is the worst humanitarian emergency, indicating a complete collapse of access to food, water and the systems necessary for survival.

  According to the World Health Organization (WHO), since Israel’s complete blockade began on March 2, at least 57 children have died from the effects of malnutrition.

• What does starvation do to the body?

  Israel is using starvation as a weapon of war. A report released by Doctors of the World (Medecins du Monde) this week states that in just 18 months, acute malnutrition in Gaza has risen to levels similar to those found in countries enduring protracted humanitarian crises spanning several decades.

  Starvation is when the human body is deprived of food for so long that it suffers and often dies.