Food stocks have run out in war-torn Gaza, deepening hunger in the Palestinian enclave amid Israel’s destructive war, the UN Agency for Palestinian Refugees (UNRWA) has said.

“Hunger is deepening in Gaza,” UNRWA said in a statement on Sunday.

“People, including many children, are hoping to get some food to survive during a warm meal distribution by charitable organizations.”

The refugee agency said that its flour supplies in the enclave have run out this week.

“Nearly 3,000 UNRWA trucks of lifesaving aid are ready to enter Gaza,” it said. “The siege must stop.”

UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini said that Palestinian children in the blockaded Gaza are starving.

“The Government of Israel continues to block the entry of food and other basics,” he said. “A manmade and politically motivated starvation.”

“Calls to bring in supplies are going unheeded.”

Israel’s brutality

Since March 2, Israel has kept Gaza’s crossings closed to food, medical, and humanitarian aid, deepening the humanitarian catastrophe, according to government, human rights, and international reports.

Over 52,200 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza in a brutal Israeli onslaught since October 2023, most of them women and children.

The International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants last November for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former Defence Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.

Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on the enclave.