Aid groups are raising new alarm over Israel's blockade of the war-ravaged Gaza Strip, where it has barred entry of all food and other goods for more than six weeks. Thousands of children have become malnourished, and most people are barely eating one meal a day as stocks dwindle, the United Nations says.
The humanitarian aid system in Gaza "is facing total collapse," the heads of 12 independent aid organizations warned in a joint statement. They said many groups have shut down operations because Israel's resumed bombardment the past month has made it too dangerous.
Israeli strikes overnight into Thursday killed at least 23 people, including a family of 10.
A strike in the southern city of Khan Younis killed five children, four women and a man from the same family, all of whom suffered severe burns, according to Nasser Hospital, which received the bodies. Strikes in northern Gaza killed 13 people, including nine children, according to the Indonesian Hospital.
The Israeli military says it targets Hamas militants and tries to limit civilian casualties. It often strikes homes, shelters and public areas, blaming Hamas for civilian deaths because it operates there. There was no immediate comment on the latest strikes.
Israel ended a ceasefire on March 18 and renewed its bombardment, killing hundreds of people and seizing large parts of the territory to pressure Hamas to accept changes to the deal that would speed the release of hostages.
Nearly all rely on charity kitchens
The U.N. humanitarian office, known as OCHA, said almost all of Gaza's more than 2 million people now rely on charity kitchens, which can prepare only 1 million meals a day. The meals mainly consist of rice or pasta with no fresh vegetables or meat.
Other food distribution programs have shut down for lack of supplies, and the U.N. and other aid groups have been sending their remaining stocks to the charity kitchens.
The only other way to find food in Gaza is from markets. But prices are spiraling and shortages are widespread, meaning humanitarian aid is the primary food source for 80% of the population, the World Food Program said in its monthly report for April.
"The Gaza Strip is now likely facing the worst humanitarian crisis in the 18 months" since the war began, OCHA said.
Most people in Gaza are now down to one meal a day, said Shaina Low, a spokesperson for the Norwegian Refugee Council. "It's far lower than what is needed," she said.
Water is also growing scarce, with Palestinians standing in long lines to fill jerry cans from trucks. Omar Shatat, an official with a local water utility, said people are down to six or seven liters per day, well below the amount the U.N. estimates is needed to meet basic needs.
More hungry children, and they are harder to reach
In March, more than 3,600 children were newly admitted for treatment for acute malnutrition, up from around 2,000 the month before, according to OCHA, which said "the rapid deterioration of the nutrition situation is already visible."
Aid groups are also less able to treat malnourished children because of Israel's airstrikes and ground operations.
In March, the number of children under 5 that aid workers could supply with nutrient supplements fell 70% from February, down to 22,300 children – a fraction of the 29,000 children they aim to reach. Only around 100 of the original 173 treatment sites still function, OCHA said.
"Humanitarians have been forced to watch people suffer and die while carrying the impossible burden of providing relief with depleted supplies, all while facing the same life-threatening conditions themselves," said Amande Bazerolle, the emergency coordinator in Gaza for Doctors Without Borders.
"This is not a humanitarian failure — it is a political choice, and a deliberate assault on a people's ability to survive, carried out with impunity," she said in a statement.
Israeli bombardment endangers aid workers
A survey of 47 aid groups found that 95% of them have reduced or entirely halted their operations, mainly because it was too dangerous amid Israeli bombardment, according to the joint statement by the heads of humanitarian organizations, which included the Norwegian Refugee Council, Oxfam, Save the Children, CARE and Medical Aid for Palestinians.
Since resuming the war, Israel has largely stopped coordinating with humanitarian groups over their movements in Gaza. That means aid workers have no assurance the military won't strike them. COGAT, the military agency in charge of aid coordination in Gaza, acknowledged stopping the system, which had been in place before the ceasefire.
Since mid-March, Israeli fire has hit the staff or facilities of at least 14 organizations, and around 60 aid workers have been killed, according to the statement.
"When our staff and partners, our convoys, our offices, our warehouses are shelled, the message is loud and clear: even lifesaving aid is no longer protected," the 12 aid organization heads said. "This is unacceptable."
Israel says the blockade is a pressure tactic
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said Wednesday that blocking aid is one of the "central pressure tactics" used against Hamas, which Israel accuses of siphoning off aid to maintain its rule. Aid workers deny there is significant diversion of aid, saying the U.N. closely monitors the distribution of supplies.
Israel is demanding that Hamas release more hostages at the start of any new ceasefire and ultimately agree to disarm and leave the territory. Katz said that even afterward, Israel will continue to occupy large "security zones" inside Gaza.
Hamas is currently holding 59 hostages, 24 of whom are believed to be alive. It says it will only return them in exchange for the release of more Palestinian prisoners, a full Israeli withdrawal from Gaza and a lasting truce, as called for in the now-defunct ceasefire agreement reached earlier this year.
Hani Almadhoun, co-founder of Gaza Soup Kitchen, said his kitchen has food for about three more weeks.
"But food is loosely defined. We have pasta and rice but nothing much beyond that. No fresh produce. There is no chicken or beef. The only thing we have is canned meat," he said. Up to one in five of those who come to his kitchen for food leave empty-handed, he said..
The war began when Hamas-led militants attacked southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducting 251. Most of the hostages have since been released in ceasefire agreements or other deals. Israel has rescued eight and recovered dozens of bodies.
Israel's offensive has killed over 51,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children, according to the Gaza Health Ministry, which does not say how many of the dead were civilians or combatants. Israel says it has killed around 20,000 militants, without providing evidence.
The war has destroyed vast parts of Gaza and most of its food production capabilities. The war has displaced around 90% of the population, with hundreds of thousands of people living in tent camps and bombed-out buildings.
