WFP chief economist: 80% of people in famine are in Gaza
2 Min Read
The WFP's Chief economist notes that globally there are 129,000 who are in famine, and in Gaza alone, there are 577,000.
-
Palestinians line up for cooking gas during the second day of the truce between the Resistance and the IOF in Rafah, Gaza Strip, Saturday, November 25, 2023 (AP)
A recent report by The New Yorker interviewing Arif Husain, chief economist at the United Nations' World Food Program (WFP) sheds light on the dire food insecurity situation in Gaza.
"80% of the people, or four out of five people, in famine or a catastrophic type of hunger are in Gaza right now," he said describing the situation as unprecedented.
"The entire population [of Gaza] of 2.2 million people is in a food-security crisis or a worse situation," he added.
Read more: 'Israel' using starvation of civilians as warfare method in Gaza: HRW
"In the case of Gaza, a quarter of the population is already in that state, meaning they’re in catastrophic levels of hunger. We don’t call it a full famine. Why? Because they haven’t met the other conditions... But if what is happening continues or worsens, pretty soon—within the next six months—we will have a full-fledged famine."
"I’ve been doing this for the past two decades, and I’ve been to all kinds of conflicts and all kinds of crises. And, for me, this is unprecedented because of, one, the magnitude, the scale, the entire population of a particular place," he explained.
To highlight the magnitude of the situation, Arif Husain notes that globally there 129,000 who are in famine, while in Gaza alone there are 577,000.
Read more: Morning massacre in Gaza; more than 40 killed
WHO mission in Gaza reports 'rising desperation due to acute hunger'
Back in December, the World Health Organization (WHO) disclosed that it conducted missions to poorly functioning hospitals in northern Gaza.
The UN health agency, along with its partners, delivered aid, including fuel, to Al-Shifa hospital, which was once Gaza's largest and most advanced medical facility, according to WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Describing the observations during the December 23 mission, Tedros highlighted in a post on X the growing fear of starvation.
Rising desperation due to acute hunger witnessed during joint mission by @WHO, @UNOCHA, @UNICEF, @WCKitchen to hospitals in north #Gaza; partners demand immediate scale-up of food and water to ensure population health and stability.
— Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus (@DrTedros) December 24, 2023
On 23 December, WHO and partners visited, and… pic.twitter.com/uNQep7Ig6T
“Partners demand immediate scale-up of food and water to ensure population health and stability,” he said.
Read more: Saudi Arabia rejects plans for Nakba in Gaza Strip
