Struggling Survivors in Gaza Fight for Basic Nourishment as Israel Imposes Aid Restrictions
In the war-torn streets of Gaza, desperate cries echo as people struggle to survive. Young children and adults, with pots and pans in hand, plead for aid; this time, it's rice. The chaos at a community kitchen in Khan Younis on a Friday is too much to bear for Niveen Abu Arar, a mother of eight. She doesn't make it to the front of the frantic crowd, leaving with empty-handed tears.
"When will this nightmare end?" she questions, her eyes brimming with unshed tears. Her family hasn't tasted bread in over a month and a half. There's no flour, nothing. She cradles a toddler in her lap, pouring water into a baby bottle in an attempt to stifle the child's hunger pangs.
Israel has banned all forms of aid - food, medicine - into Gaza for the past two months. As aid groups issue warnings of impending starvation, Israel argues that the blockade and renewed military campaign are aimed at compelling Hamas to release remaining hostages and disarm. Humanitarian groups, however, point out that obstructing aid is a form of collective punishment, a violation of international law.
Israeli authorities didn't respond to allegations that starvation is being used as a weapon of war. In the past, they've accused Hamas of stealing aid. In an emergency briefing, aid groups painted a grim picture: a territory on the brink of food, water, and fuel shortages, with skyrocketing prices for scarce supplies.
With over 80% of the population relying on aid, warehouses are empty, community kitchens are closing, and families are skipping meals. A 55-pound bag of flour now costs $360, according to Ghada al Haddad, Oxfam's media coordinator in Gaza.
"Mothers in Gaza now feed their children one meal per day," she said, "so they don't wake up and complain they're starving."
Amjad Shawwa, the director of the Palestinian NGO network, predicts that over 70 community kitchens will close within a week if the Israeli blockade continues.
Israeli airstrikes have destroyed large swaths of Gaza's agricultural land and livestock, making self-sustenance impossible. Gavin Kelleher, a humanitarian manager with the Norwegian Refugee Council, notes that even fishers have been targeted.
"Israel has intentionally engineered a situation where Palestinians cannot produce their own food or fish for themselves," he said.
Kelleher, who coordinates aid distribution, reports that no aid group has any tents left to distribute, given the devastation caused by the 19-month war.
In Khan Younis, Mustafa Ashour walked for an hour to reach the charity community kitchen and waited another two hours for food. "Life in Gaza is unbearable," he said, "with crossings closed, it's a full siege."
As for Abu Arar and her family, left without a handout from the charity kitchen, a neighboring family shared their meager portions of rice. If Israel continues the blockade, Keller of the NRC warns, "thousands of people will die, there will be a complete breakdown of life, and we will struggle to understand the situation because it will be unfolding in the dark."
Overall, the Gaza food crisis has reached catastrophic levels due to a complete Israeli blockade. This ban on aid - including food, water, and fuel - has now lasted twice as long as the initial siege imposed in 2023, with border crossings closed for over two months. As a result, over two million people face starvation, with food stocks fully depleted. Further consequences include a high risk of child malnutrition, the collapse of medical facilities, and an economic collapse with food prices surging over 1,400%. The UN describes this crisis as politically motivated starvation, emphasizing that it is entirely preventable. Without immediate action to lift the blockade, mass civilian casualties appear inevitable.
- Niveen Abu Arar, a mother of eight, questions when the nightmarish situation in Gaza will end, her family having gone without bread for over a month and a half.
- Humanitarian groups accuse Israel of using starvation as a weapon of war, despite Israeli authorities not responding to these allegations.
- Aid groups predict that over 70 community kitchens will close within a week if the Israeli blockade continues, leaving millions at risk of starvation.
- Israeli airstrikes have destroyed vast amounts of Gaza's agricultural land and livestock, making self-sustenance impossible for the Palestinians.
- In Gaza, a 55-pound bag of flour now costs $360, according to Ghada al Haddad, Oxfam's media coordinator in Gaza, making it unaffordable for the majority of the population.
- Amjad Shawwa, the director of the Palestinian NGO network, points out that without aid, many Palestinians will not have enough food to eat.
- Gavin Kelleher, a humanitarian manager with the Norwegian Refugee Council, says that Israel has intentionally created a situation where Palestinians cannot produce their own food or fish for themselves.
- The UN describes the Gaza food crisis as politically motivated starvation, emphasizing that it is entirely preventable and threatens to result in mass civilian casualties if immediate action is not taken to lift the blockade.
