Israeli strikes and gunfire killed at least 33 Palestinians in the Gaza Strip on Saturday, including people sheltering in tents or seeking scarce food, local hospitals said as a famine in Gaza City sparks new pressure on Israel over its 22-month offensive.
Israel’s defense minister has warned that Gaza’s largest city could be destroyed in a new military operation perhaps just days away, even as famine spreads there.
Aid groups have long warned that the war, sparked by Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack, and months of Israeli restrictions on food and medical supplies entering Gaza are causing starvation. The world’s foremost authority on food crises, the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification, or IPC, announced Friday that famine is happening in Gaza City and was likely to spread throughout the territory.
Israel has rejected the data-based famine declaration as “an outright lie.” Ceasefire efforts are on hold as mediators await Israel’s next steps.