The Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Monitor said that Israel's starvation of the civilian population in the Gaza Strip will have long-term and irreversible effects, in light of international reports and experts confirming that the number of victims of starvation and the diseases associated with it may exceed the number of those killed directly during the ongoing Israeli military attack on the Strip. Since last October.

This came in a policy paper issued by Euro-Med entitled “The Gaza Strip: A scene of genocide since October 7th and a potential famine zone on February 7th,” in which it provided an analysis of the catastrophic food situation in the Gaza Strip and indicators of the beginning of the spread of famine, especially in the northern governorates.

The paper was based primarily on reports issued in this regard by competent international bodies, most notably the global initiative for the “Integrated Phase Classification of Food Security (IPC).

The paper indicated that, in the best case scenario, the rate of humanitarian aid allowed into the Gaza Strip ranges between 70 to 100 trucks, two of which go to the northern governorates, while the number of goods and aid trucks entering the Gaza Strip before October 7, 2023 was 500 trucks daily.

Lima Bastami, Director of the Legal Department at the Euro-Mediterranean Monitor, said: “These statistics are self-evident, and do not need much clarification, that what enters the sector does not meet the minimum level of the population’s needs in light of the severe, continuous, and accumulated deprivation of the basics of food, drinking water, and medicine due to the blockade, and the expansion of their needs due to the inhumane conditions they face, genocide, and the cutting of electricity, water, and fuel supplies.”

Bustami added that the situation is becoming more complicated because the residents of the Gaza Strip are besieged from all sides, which prevents them from being able to produce the local production necessary to survive, or to obtain food from other sources.

The paper referred to the conclusions of the reports issued by the mechanisms of the Integrated Food Security Interim Classification, that the Gaza Strip is witnessing the highest percentage of the population facing high levels of acute food instability in the past twenty years, at the very least, and that by February 7, About 53% of its population will suffer from an extreme acute malnutrition emergency, while 26% of them, or about half a million people, will suffer from famine, and an increase in deaths resulting from hunger, malnutrition, or diseases related to them.

After recognizing the existence of evidence and indicators of the occurrence of a famine in the Gaza Strip, according to the Interim Classification Analysis Team’s report, the Famine Review Committee (FRC) was activated to conduct a comprehensive review of the report and ensure the technical accuracy and impartiality of the analysis before confirming and communicating the results mentioned therein.

The Committee concluded that the findings of the Panel's report were reasonable, that the famine threshold (stage 5) for severe food security had already been crossed, that the estimates contained in the Panel's report were conservative indicators, and that the extent of the famine's prevalence among the overall population was likely to be The sector is higher than the mentioned percentages.

Batsami reported that, in general, the process of declaring a state of famine remains a rare occurrence, as it has only been declared twice in modern history. Once in Somalia in 2011, and the other in South Sudan in 2017, while Yemen, despite the catastrophic food situation and the rapid increase in the number of famine victims, remains outside the framework of the official declaration of famine, until now.

She pointed out that declaring a state of famine officially, or not, does not change the fact that it has already spread in the Gaza Strip, especially in the northern governorates, and that it has become a catastrophe due to which the population is now dying.

Bustami said that declaring famine in Gaza “may find its way before the International Court of Justice, which is now considering the lawsuit filed by South Africa against Israel for violations of its obligations under the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, whether when the court evaluates Israel’s compliance with the precautionary measures it imposed on it, Given the suspicion that it has violated its obligations under the agreement, or to request an amendment to those precautionary measures under Article (73) of the court regulations, or as additional evidence that the court will weigh during its examination of the merits of the case and issuing its final ruling therein.”

The paper recommended that the Palestinian government respond early to the famine and respond effectively to it, by devoting all available capabilities to activating executable emergency plans and budgets, monitoring and collecting accurate and updated data and information about the availability, access and use of food, as well as nutritional status and mortality rates, and sharing and communicating about them with the relevant international authorities, including the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the World Food Program, and UNICEF, to ensure that response efforts are complementary, and that joint assessments are conducted on a regular basis.

It also called on the international community to refrain from any action that would constitute the crime of participating in or conspiring to commit the crime of starvation, or to take any measures that would deepen this crime and its effects, including breaking the siege on the Gaza Strip and delivering aid to it directly, by land (from Egypt), sea and air, and to immediately resume funding for UNRWA, as it is the main international agency currently responsible for the process of introducing and distributing humanitarian aid in the Gaza Strip.

The paper called on the relevant United Nations institutions and the “Integrated Phase Classification of Food Security” (IPC) mechanisms to work to strengthen the work of monitoring and evaluation mechanisms for the food crisis afflicting the Gaza Strip, including tracking indicators of the acceleration of the deterioration of the food crisis and the spread of famine, documenting data and providing analyzes based on the Interim classification system. Most importantly, the mechanisms for this classification submit their second report as quickly as possible, especially as the estimated period (projection) for their first report approaches the end of February 7.

The paper also called for UN Chief to fulfill his legal responsibility under Security Council Resolution No. (2417) issued in 2018 on the protection of civilians in armed conflict, which mandated him to quickly inform the Security Council when there is a risk of famine resulting from a conflict or a situation of widespread food insecurity in armed contexts. Therefore, in accordance with the resolution, the Security Council gives its full attention to the information provided by the Secretary-General in this context. It is noteworthy that, to date, the Secretary-General has not activated his role under this resolution.