The UN special rapporteur on the right to food, Michael Fakhri stated in an exclusive interview with The Guardian that "Israel" is deliberately starving Palestinians and should be held responsible for war crimes and genocide.

“There is no reason to intentionally block the passage of humanitarian aid or intentionally obliterate small-scale fishing vessels, greenhouses, and orchards in Gaza – other than to deny people access to food," Fakhri stated.

He further emphasized that “Intentionally depriving people of food is clearly a war crime. Israel has announced its intention to destroy the Palestinian people, in whole or in part, simply for being Palestinian. In my view as a UN human rights expert, this is now a situation of genocide. This means the State of Israel in its entirety is culpable and should be held accountable – not just individuals or this government, or that person."

Fakhri, who is a law professor at the University of Oregon also said, “The speed of malnourishment of young children is also astounding. The bombing and people being killed directly is brutal, but this starvation – and the wasting and stunting of children – is torturous and vile. It will have a long-term impact on the population physically, cognitively, and morally…All things indicate that this has been intentional."

“We have never seen a civilian population made to go so hungry so quickly and so completely, that is the consensus among starvation experts,” Fakhri stressed, further emphasizing “Israel is not just targeting civilians, it is trying to damn the future of the Palestinian people by harming their children.”

Addressing the funding cut on the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) amid the Israeli campaign against the organization, Fakhri commented, “Ending funding almost instantaneously based on unsubstantiated claims against a small number of people has no other purpose other than collective punishment of all Palestinians in multiple countries. The countries that withdrew this lifeline are undoubtedly complicit in the starvation of Palestinians."

Since October 7, 24,000 acres of olives remained unharvested in the West Bank after "Israel" massively stopped farmers from accessing their orchards, resulting in the loss of 1,200 metric tons, or $10 million of olive oil, a key Palestinian export and a powerful symbol of Palestinian identity.

Fakhri addressed the above-mentioned stating, “The destruction of olive trees isn’t just an issue of food or commerce, it’s at the core of what it means to be Palestinian and their relationship to the land, just as the sea is central to what it means to be from Gaza."

Fakhri further stressed that “Israel will claim there are exceptions to war crimes. But there is no exception to genocide and there’s no argument as to why Israel is destroying civilian infrastructure, the food system, and humanitarian workers, and allowing this degree of malnutrition and hunger … the charge of genocide holds a whole state accountable and the remedy of genocide is the issue of self-determination of the Palestinian people," concluding, “The path forward must not just be ending the war but actually peace.”

A deeper look into Israeli crimes addressed by Fakhri

The United Nations warned on February 19 that an alarming lack of food, surging malnutrition, and the rampant spread of disease could spark an explosion in child deaths in Gaza.

Twenty weeks into the Israeli aggression on the Gaza Strip, UN agencies warned that food and safe water had become "incredibly scarce" in the Palestinian territory, adding that virtually all young children had infectious illnesses.

"The Gaza Strip is poised to witness an explosion in preventable child deaths which would compound the already unbearable level of child deaths in Gaza," Ted Chaiban, deputy head of humanitarian action at the UN children's agency UNICEF, expressed.

At least 90% of children under five in Gaza are affected by one or more infectious diseases, according to a joint assessment by the UN agencies for children, food, and health.

Why is this happening?

The Euro-Med Human Rights Monitor released a statement on January 16 stressing that the Israeli occupation forces are not only starving Palestinians in northern Gaza due to the continuous blockade, but have also killed dozens of individuals who tried to receive the meager aid that is arriving there, continuing the genocide being committed against Palestinians since October 7.

There were shocking testimonies of the Israeli forces killing and injuring dozens of Palestinians on Thursday, January 11, 2024, on al-Rashid Street, west of Gaza, as they attempted to receive humanitarian aid.

It was also shown that dozens of Palestinians gathered on al-Rashid Street, which had been destroyed by Israeli bulldozers in recent weeks, awaiting the arrival of the UN trucks carrying flour. Out of nowhere, Israeli quadcopter drones opened fire on them, killing 50 of them and injuring many others. Those who managed to survive this massacre transferred the wounded, as the dead remained on the ground. 

Human rights groups have commented on the above

Two human rights organizations accused "Israel" on Monday of further restricting humanitarian supplies to Gaza, despite the ICJ's ruling.

Exactly one month ago, the International Court of Justice in The Hague declared that "Israel" must do everything possible to avert genocide in the besieged region. The ICJ further emphasized the importance of taking "immediate and effective measures" to provide relief.

However, Amnesty International stated that Israeli authorities have "failed to take even the bare minimum steps to comply" with the ICJ verdict.

ICJ decisions are legally binding, but the court lacks an enforcement mechanism.

Both Amnesty and Human Rights Watch (HRW) reported that the number of assistance trucks entering Gaza has fallen by around one-third since the verdict came out.