Doha: The UN Security Council’s members except the US, said Wednesday that the famine in the Gaza Strip is a man-made crisis and warned against the use of starvation as a weapon of war, as it is prohibited under international humanitarian law. In a joint statement, the Council members called for an immediate, permanent, and unconditional ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, a significant increase in aid throughout the Strip, and for Israel, the occupying power, to immediately and unconditionally lift all restrictions on the delivery of aid.
According to Qatar News Agency, the statement called on Israel not to expand its military operation in Gaza. The statement affirmed the 14 members’ confidence in the work of the Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) system for Gaza, while expressing their alarm and concern about the threat of famine in Gaza. The United Nations officially declared famine in Gaza on Friday, and that 500,000 people are suffering from catastrophic levels of hunger, based on the FSC report, a tool supported by the UN.