Gaza famine officially declared in 'deep stain on our collective humanity'

Famine has officially been declared in war-torn Gaza in what has been branded a “deep stain on our collective humanity”.

Children are among hundreds already said to have perished from malnutrition-related deaths as the stricken enclave stands in ruins after nearly two years of bombardment by Israel. But the official declaration of famine marks a significant step in the humanitarian crisis. The UN-backed Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) made the formal declaration today that famine is occurring in Gaza City – warning it is expected to spread south. The grim milestone is only the fifth time it has declared famine, after Somalia in 2011, South Sudan in both 2017 and 2020 and Sudan last year.

The IPC said today: "As of 15 August 2025, Famine (IPC Phase 5)—with reasonable evidence—is confirmed in Gaza Governorate. After 22 months of relentless conflict, over half a million people in the Gaza Strip are facing catastrophic conditions characterised by starvation, destitution and death. Another 1.07 million people (54 percent) are in Emergency (IPC Phase 4), and 396,000people (20 percent) are in Crisis (IPC Phase 3).Between mid-August and the end of September 2025, conditions are expected to further worsen with Famine projected to expand to Deir al-Balah and Khan Younis. Nearly a third of the population (641,000 people) are expected to face catastrophic conditions (IPC Phase 5), while those in Emergency (IPC Phase 4) will likely rise to 1.14 million (58 percent)."

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It added: "Acute malnutrition is projected to continue worsening rapidly. Through June 2026, at least132,000 children under five are expected to suffer from acute malnutrition—double the IPC estimates from May 2025. This includes over 41,000 severe cases of children at heightened risk of death. Nearly 55,500 malnourished pregnant and breastfeeding women will require urgent nutrition response." Meanwhile, it explained: "Conditions in North Gaza Governorate are estimated to be as severe—or worse—than in Gaza Governorate. However, limited data prevents IPC classification of this area, highlighting the urgent need for access and comprehensive assessments."

The IPC defines famine as being “a situation in which at least one in five households has an extreme lack of food and face starvation and destitution, resulting in extremely critical levels of acute malnutrition and death”. The Israeli military agency in charge of transferring aid to the territory rejected the IPC's report, calling it "false and biased". The agency, known as COGAT, rejected there was famine in Gaza, saying significant steps had been taken to expand the amount of aid entering the strip in recent weeks. Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu has denied there is hunger in Gaza, labelling reports of starvation "lies" promoted by Hamas.

But Taahra Ghazi, co-CEO of ActionAid UK, said: “That famine should be officially confirmed in Gaza for the first time by the IPC despite months of repeated warnings, and despite it being entirely preventable, is a deep stain on our collective humanity. Let there be no doubt: this is an entirely engineered famine and the direct result of the Israeli authorities’ deliberate blocking of food, water and other humanitarian aid into Gaza, which breaches international humanitarian law. It is utterly shameful that, for so many months, the Israeli authorities have used starvation as a weapon of war with impunity: now we are seeing the calamitous consequences play out. Malnourished mothers are unable to breastfeed their babies; our own staff and partners are dizzy and exhausted because they give any food they can find to their children and go hungry themselves.”

It comes as Israel’s defence minister has warned Gaza City could be destroyed unless Hamas accepts its terms, with the country preparing for an expanded offensive in the area. After Netanyahu said he would authorise the military to seize Gaza City, Israel Katz warned the enclave's largest city could "turn into Rafah and Beit Hanoun" - areas reduced to rubble earlier in the war. Mr Katz wrote on X "The gates of hell will soon open on the heads of Hamas' murderers and rapists in Gaza - until they agree to Israel's conditions for ending the war." He restated Israel's ceasefire demands to release all hostages and Hamas' complete disarmament. Hamas has said it would release captives in exchange for ending the war, but rejects disarmament without the creation of a Palestinian state.

Ghazi added: “People in Gaza City are already experiencing famine: now they are in the midst of an intensified assault by the Israeli military and facing a full ground offensive, which would forcibly displace hundreds of thousands of people and severely disrupt humanitarian operations at a time when they are needed more than ever. It is difficult to stress just how much more dire the situation will become if it goes ahead. There is now a race against time to stop this famine from becoming any further entrenched. Every hour counts and there is no time to waste. The international community must take meaningful action and use diplomatic pressure to bring about a permanent ceasefire immediately. Food and other aid must be allowed to enter Gaza unhindered, rapidly and at scale if there is to be any hope of preventing any more deaths by starvation.”

Faten, Senior Project Officer with WEFAQ, ActionAid’s partner in Gaza, said: “In the past two months, I have lost 20 kilograms. My children have lost weight and are malnourished. We haven’t had proper meals for three days. I am exhausted, dizzy, and terrified my children will get sicker. I cry daily. This is the first time in my life I have wished I didn’t have children – because watching them waste away is unbearable.”

Meanwhile, Dr Ra’ed Al-Baba, who works at Al Awda Hospital, run by ActionAid’s partner Al-Awda, said: “There are mothers who resort to using legume water, herbs, and other alternatives to infant milk because of the severe shortage. These methods carry catastrophic risks, causing gastroenteritis, food poisoning, delayed growth, severe anaemia, and even the inability to move. We have seen cases of extreme dehydration from polluted water mixed with these substitutes. This is not survival, this is slow death.”

The war was sparked by the Hamas-led October 7 attack on Israel in 2023, which killed about 1,200 people, with 251 hostages taken. Over 62,000 Palestinians have been killed in the conflict, according to Gaza’s health ministry.