The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) announced on Friday that it has officially depleted all its food stocks for families in Gaza, warning that unless immediate action is taken to open border crossings, critical food assistance will be forced to end.
In its official statement, WFP said it delivered its last remaining supplies to communal hot meal kitchens across the Gaza Strip. These kitchens, which have been a vital source of daily sustenance, are expected to fully run out of food in the coming days. Despite reaching only half of the population and covering just 25 percent of daily nutritional needs, the hot meal kitchens have served as a critical lifeline during the crisis.
WFP-supported bakeries that had been distributing affordable bread to Gaza’s residents were forced to close on March 31 due to a shortage of wheat flour and cooking fuel. That same week, the distribution of WFP food parcels — designed to provide two weeks’ worth of rations — was also exhausted.
The agency also noted a severe lack of safe water and cooking fuel, forcing residents to scavenge for materials to burn in order to prepare basic meals.
No humanitarian or commercial supplies have entered Gaza for over seven weeks, the longest closure the territory has ever experienced. Food prices have surged by up to 1,400 percent compared to during the previous ceasefire, according to WFP, raising serious nutrition concerns for children under five, pregnant and breastfeeding women, and the elderly.
More than 116,000 metric tons of food assistance — enough to feed one million people for up to four months — is currently positioned at aid corridors but remains blocked outside Gaza, awaiting the reopening of border crossings.
“The situation inside the Gaza Strip has once again reached a breaking point,” WFP stated. “People are running out of ways to cope, and the fragile gains made during the short ceasefire have unraveled.” Without urgent border access, WFP’s critical humanitarian operations will be forced to cease altogether, the agency warned.
WFP has called on all parties to prioritize the needs of civilians, allow immediate entry of humanitarian aid, and uphold obligations under international humanitarian law.
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