UN warns of famine in Gaza
(VOVWORLD) - The head of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA), Philippe Lazzarini, warned on Wednesday of the risk of famine in Gaza, following multiple Israeli airstrikes on numerous areas in the enclave.
 Children gather to receive food relief in the Jabalia refugee camp in the northern Gaza Strip, on August 26, 2024. (Photo: Xinhua/VNA) |
Lazzarini told a press conference in Berlin that “there is a real risk today... that we enter a situation where famine or acute malnutrition is unfortunately again a likelihood,” describing Gaza as “a kind of wasteland” and “almost unlivable”.
Vast areas of Gaza have been devastated by Israel’s retaliatory assault on the territory after the Israel-Hamas conflict broke out last year. Israel has been intensifying operations in the north of the besieged territory, where the UN has warned hundreds of thousands of people are trapped.
US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin urged Israel to “continue taking steps to address the dire humanitarian situation” in a phone call with Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant on Wednesday.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu convened an emergency meeting on Wednesday to discuss expanding humanitarian aid to Gaza.