World Food Programme announces halt of aid to half a million people in Gaza
The World Food Programme has suspended monthly aid to half a million people in Gaza due to funding shortages, leaving 1.4 million people facing food insecurity.
Translated by Qiyas from الجريدة — Original source
The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) announced on Monday its decision to halt monthly assistance for 500,000 people in the Gaza Strip due to funding shortages, while warning that needs remain substantial.
Sean Hughes, the WFP Country Director for the Palestinian territories, told AFP, “Starting this month, we have had to remove half a million people from the total number of individuals we provide assistance to.”
This reduces the number of Palestinians receiving WFP assistance, whether in the form of food or cash, to 1.1 million people, roughly half of Gaza’s population.
The WFP stated that its efforts helped mitigate the famine conditions experienced in Gaza last year—a characterization that Israel disputes. It warned that conditions have not improved to the point where aid can be discontinued.
Hughes, speaking from the agency’s office in East Jerusalem, said, “People are not safe. Airstrikes continue daily. People are still displacing.”
He added, “Almost everyone still lacks a permanent home to live in. Humanitarian conditions are harsh.”
Latest assessments indicate that 1.4 million people, approximately two-thirds of Gaza’s population, continue to suffer from “acute food insecurity” and require humanitarian assistance to survive.
