Famine fears as aid cuts and shipment restrictions coincide in Gaza

Deir el-Balah, Gaza Strip — Manal Abu Rabie, a displaced mother of six from Beit Lahiya in northern Gaza, received news that the World Food Programme (WFP) was cutting food assistance to the enclave with fear about what is to follow in the coming days.

Gaza has suffered from severe shortages of key staples such as eggs, flour and onions after Israel closed border crossings into the enclave on Wednesday. The prices of food and other essentials have skyrocketed, and families who can afford to do so have been bulk buying, in anticipation of a prolonged blockade.

After the WFP announced cuts to food aid, the price of a bundle of bread rose from 5 to 12 shekels (around $1.60 to $3.90).

Abu Rabie has already been struggling to provide food for her family and says she has little to fall back on if the support she needs is reduced after the announcement of aid cuts.

“We were just beginning to say, ‘Thank God,’ and now they want to cut off our food and drink,” she said. “We are going back to starvation. We are dying of hunger.”

On Monday, the WFP announced that a funding shortfall had forced it to reduce the number of people receiving monthly food assistance in Gaza from 1.6 million to 1.1 million, leaving around 500,000 people without support.

The agency is also halving food rations, meaning families receiving assistance will get one food parcel instead of two, alongside a smaller bag of wheat flour.

The number of hot meals provided daily will fall from 250,000 to 150,000, while cash assistance will be reduced for 75,000 families. The WFP said the cuts were driven by a lack of funding, despite continued humanitarian needs.

The suspension of aid shipments into Gaza for a sixth consecutive day, which is a separate development, has added to uncertainty about the availability and affordability of food, fuel and medicine.

‘I cannot afford to buy anything’

Abu Rabie, 39, who lives in al-Salam camp in Deir el-Balah, central Gaza, relies on food assistance, including parcels containing lentils, rice, flour and cooking oil.

Her family is already struggling to afford basic food items as prices rise, with a small bottle of cooking oil, which is included in WFP food parcels, now costing 10 shekels ($3.20), is beyond her means.

“It is very difficult. I cannot afford to buy anything,” she said.

She has high blood pressure, diabetes and heart disease. With no alternative, she is forced to live off the food provided in aid parcels, aggravating her digestive problems.

“If the assistance stops and the quantities become smaller, how are we supposed to get through the day? We’ll have to eat sand. That is all that will be left for us,” she said.

“I swear to God, my son asks me for things, and I cannot get them for him. My husband is injured, and I am sick.”

The approaching winter is adding to her anxiety. Abu Rabie said her family had no blankets or mattresses.

“I say, ‘God, please don’t let winter come’, because we have no blankets and no mattresses,” she said. “There is no food and no drink. God knows how we are managing.”

Warnings of worsening hunger

In a statement issued on Monday, Gaza’s Government Media Office warned that the WFP’s planned cuts could worsen the humanitarian crisis and leave hundreds of thousands of Palestinians facing greater food insecurity.

The office called on the United Nations and the international community to provide urgent funding to sustain relief programmes. It also held Israel responsible for the consequences of the restrictions on aid entering Gaza, and called for all crossings to be opened to allow humanitarian supplies to enter without interruption.

The statement urged Arab and Islamic countries, as well as international organisations, to provide financial support and help facilitate the delivery of food, medical supplies and other essential items.

The WFP, meanwhile, has attributed its planned reductions to a funding shortfall rather than a decline in humanitarian needs, appealing to donors for additional support.

Randa al-War, a displaced mother of three originally from Gaza City’s Shujayea neighbourhood, said food assistance from the WFP is a lifeline.

She now lives with her family in Sarsour camp in Deir el-Balah and said they receive no assistance from other organisations.

“We depend on the World Food Programme. We cannot live without bread, without flour. These children need to eat,” she said.

Al-War said the food parcels which her family receives every two or three months, including flour and cooking oil, last around a month.

“We get through the day if the food parcel comes. If it comes, the children eat. If it doesn’t, there is no food,” she said.

She fears that the WFP’s cuts could leave her family without the support it relies on. Buying food from the market is not a realistic alternative, she said, because neither she nor her husband can work as she is injured and he has health problems.

“I cannot work, and my husband cannot work,” she said. “We are living only on the World Food Programme and the food parcels.”

Al-War said the prospect of further cuts has left her frightened that her children will face hunger again.

“We are afraid there will be famine, because of our children. We will not be able to provide them with anything,” she said. “We are not just afraid… we are terrified that famine will return.”

Rising prices add to families’ struggles

The suspension of commercial shipments is adding to the pressure on families already struggling with reduced purchasing power and rising prices caused by the war and Israel’s siege on Gaza.

Rami al-Zayigh, a Gaza-based economic expert, said the continued closure of crossings was restricting the supply of goods in a territory already facing persistent shortages, pushing prices higher and placing further pressure on families.

“The issue goes beyond a shortage of supply,” al-Zayigh said. “Whenever the crossings close, traders and sellers raise prices, creating panic among citizens. The citizen is the biggest victim of these measures.”

Vegetables and fruit were becoming scarce in local markets, and the price of eggs had risen by about 300 percent over the past week.

Vegetables and fruit are particularly vulnerable to interruptions in supply as they risk spoiling within days, al-Zayigh said.

Citing official reports from Gaza, he said food stocks in the territory were estimated to be sufficient for only about two weeks. He warned that continued restrictions on goods entering Gaza could have further economic and health consequences, particularly for children and older people.

For families who rely on aid, the combination of reduced assistance, limited income and higher prices leaves fewer ways to secure daily meals. Al-War said families should not have to beg for the essentials they need to survive.

“We want to live like the rest of the world. We do not want to beg for these things. They should be available to us without us having to ask,” she said.

“We are human beings. We want to live, eat and drink. We want a dignified life.”