For the First Time in the Middle East: UN Officially Declares Famine in Gaza

24th August 2025

2 minutes read

For the First Time in the Middle East: UN Officially Declares Famine in Gaza

For the first time in the Middle East, the United Nations officially declared a famine in Gaza on Friday. According to experts, around 500,000 people are facing what has been described as a “catastrophic” food crisis.

After months of warnings regarding the humanitarian situation and the spread of hunger in the Palestinian enclave, the Rome-based Integrated Food Security Phase Classification confirmed that the Gaza Governorate – covering roughly 20% of the Gaza Strip – is experiencing famine conditions.

Israel, for its part, rejected the UN report, labeling it as “biased.” In a statement, the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs declared that “there is no famine in Gaza,” asserting that the report “relies on Hamas lies, amplified by organizations pursuing their own agendas.”

A population “condemned to die”
On Thursday, Philippe Lazzarini, UNRWA Commissioner-General, warned that the hungriest children in Gaza are “condemned to die” unless urgent aid reaches them immediately.

The UN official indicated that hunger is most severe in the north, where Gaza City is home to an estimated one million residents. Lazzarini announced that a comprehensive assessment of hunger in the besieged enclave will soon be published, noting that UNRWA health centers have seen a sixfold increase in the number of children suffering from severe malnutrition since March.

“If urgent measures are not taken, children are condemned to die,” he stressed, adding that Palestinians in Gaza are already dying of hunger and that “further deaths are inevitable.”

Israel recently approved a plan to take control of Gaza City in the northern part of the territory, announcing the evacuation of the area. Lazzarini described the situation in Gaza as “hell on earth,” warning that the starving and vulnerable Palestinian population would be unable to withstand a new military operation.

“Even if we proceed with evacuating people to the south, many will not be physically able to move,” he added.