‘Hungriest place on earth’: UN declares Gaza the only region where 100% of population faces famine risk

Hunger crisis persists in Gaza as Israel imposes a full blockade under Netanyahu’s rule.

The United Nations has declared that Gaza is now the only place on Earth where every single person is at risk of famine Jens Laerke, spokesman for the UN humanitarian agency OCHA, said on Friday, “Gaza is the hungriest place on earth.”“It’s the only defined area, a country or defined territory within a country, where you have the entire population at risk of famine. 100 percent of the population at risk of famine.”His statement comes as scenes of desperation and lawlessness grip the enclave. In Gaza City, seven police officers were reportedly killed by an Israeli air strike while trying to control looting in a marketplace. According to the Hamas-run interior ministry, the officers had been deployed to restore order but were targeted while confronting looters.Israel has yet to comment directly on the incident. However, it said on Thursday that it had carried out strikes on “dozens of terror targets” across Gaza. Local medics said at least 44 people were killed that day, including 23 in the central Bureij refugee camp.As Israel continues its offensive and aid remains limited, the chaos is growing. The UN’s World Food Programme (WFP) reported on Wednesday that its warehouse in Deir al-Balah was broken into by “hordes of hungry people.” Two people were reportedly shot dead during the incident. In Rafah, where a new distribution centre operated by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) has been set up with US and Israeli support, thousands of desperate people rushed the gates earlier this week. Nearly 50 people were reportedly shot and wounded as crowds overwhelmed the site. A senior UN official said the Israeli military had fired warning shots into the air but not directly at civilians.‘Will take dirt for my children to eat’Footage from Thursday showed long queues and people carrying sacks of flour on their backs, reports news agency Reuters. One woman could be seen struggling to walk among the masses, while others described going home empty-handed. “The young men are the ones who have received aid first… But the old people and women cannot enter due to the crowding,” said 60-year-old Abu Fawzi Faroukh.“I will take dirt for my children to eat,” said Hani Abed, who was unable to secure aid for his family of ten. Umm Mohammed Abu Hajar said she left without receiving anything: “Some people eat and some people don’t.”The GHF said it distributed 17,280 food boxes on Thursday, equating to nearly a million meals. It plans to open more sites in the coming weeks, including in northern Gaza. However, the UN has refused to work with the GHF system, describing it as unethical and inadequate.Jonathan Whittall, the head of the UN humanitarian office in Gaza, said GHF’s model was “essentially engineering scarcity” and couldn’t meet the needs of the 2.1 million people living there. Meanwhile, the US and Israeli governments claim the system is preventing aid from being seized by Hamas.Full blockade by IsraelIsrael imposed a full blockade on Gaza on March 2 and resumed military operations two weeks later, reports BBC. On May 19, it launched a wider offensive to take control of all areas of Gaza, and only recently began allowing limited aid back in. The military campaign began after Hamas’ October 7 attack on Israel, which killed around 1,200 people and saw 251 hostages taken.Since then, Gaza’s health ministry says over 54,000 people have been killed, including nearly 4,000 since fighting resumed in March.Talks for a new ceasefire are ongoing. On Thursday, the White House said Israel had supported a new proposal presented to Hamas, but the group later rejected it. According to Israeli sources, the deal included a 60-day ceasefire and a phased release of hostages. Hamas, however, said the proposal lacked assurances of a permanent ceasefire and full troop withdrawal.