Israeli bombardment, ground operations and besiegement of entire population in Gaza have caused catastrophic levels of acute food insecurity – IPC

ROME: The Israeli bombardment, ground operations and besiegement of the entire population in the Gaza Strip have caused catastrophic levels of acute food insecurity. Around 85 percent of the population (1.9 million people) is displaced and currently concentrated into an increasingly smaller geographic area, said the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) in a report. Between 24 November and 7 December, over 90 percent of the population in the Gaza Strip (about 2.08 million people) was estimated to face high levels of acute food insecurity, classified in IPC Phase 3 or above (Crisis or worse). Among these, over 40 percent of the population (939,000 people) were in Emergency (IPC Phase 4) and over 15 percent (378,000 people) were in Catastrophe (IPC Phase 5), it said. Between 8 December 2023 and 7 February 2024, the entire population in the Gaza Strip (about 2.2 million people) is classified in IPC Phase 3 or above (Crisis or worse), added IPC. This is the highest share of people facing high lev els of acute food insecurity that the IPC initiative has ever classified for any given area or country. Among these, about 50 percent of the population (1.17 million people) is in Emergency (IPC Phase 4) and at least one in four households (more than half a million people) is facing catastrophic conditions (IPC Phase 5, Catastrophe), said the report. These are characterized by households experiencing an extreme lack of food, starvation, and exhaustion of coping capacities. Even though the levels of acute malnutrition and non-trauma related mortality might not have yet crossed famine thresholds, these are typically the outcomes of prolonged and extreme food consumption gaps. The increased nutritional vulnerability of children, pregnant and breastfeeding women and the elderly is a particular source of concern, said the report. Source: Palestine News and Information Agency – WAFA