Gaza’s famine is the world’s shame

The declaration of a famine in the besieged Gaza should shame the world, which has failed to stop Israel’s war crimes in the enclave. The International Food Security Phase Classification (IPC), a UN-backed body which identifies hunger levels around the world, has declared that there is a man-made famine in Gaza and UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has traced it to a “failure of humanity.” The organisation has said Gaza is in Phase 5 of severe famine in which at least 30% of the children suffer from acute malnutrition and two out of 10,000 die every day due to starvation. It has said that a third of the population – nearly 641,000 people – are expected to face “catastrophic conditions”. If the present conditions continue, nearly 1,32,000 children under five will face a threat to their lives. According to reports, at least 271 people, including 112 children, have died of starvation.

Israel has weaponised hunger to punish the people of Gaza and to force them out of their land. This has been its strategy since the 2007 blockade – the restrictions have increased since then. The total blockade imposed since March this year has stopped the entry of all goods, including food, into Gaza. Food distributed by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation does not reach even a fraction of the people who need it. People who rush to food centres have been shot. Harrowing pictures of malnourished children in their mothers’ arms have haunted the world for many days. The IPC says that an “immediate at-scale” response is needed to avert a catastrophe. The UN’s Palestinian refugee agency, UNRWA, says there are about 6,000 trucks waiting at the borders for permission to take food to Gaza. But there is a determined plan at work to choke the supply and starve the people.

While talks for a ceasefire are continuing, the Israeli defence ministry has called up 60,000 reservists to seize and occupy Gaza City. Israel’s backers are guilty of complicity in its crimes. The decision of some of its allies such as Britain to recognise a Palestinian state will not make much of a difference on the ground. Last week, the US sanctioned some international criminal court judges and prosecutors who are handling a case against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The global community has till now watched helplessly the atrocities on the Palestinians. The continuing military offensive and starvation in Gaza raise important moral and ethical questions. It is unfortunate that the world has chosen to merely watch, with no sign of intent to intervene and set things right.