UN Geneva - Multimedia Newsroom : Famine in Gaza

Famine in Gaza - Tom Fletcher

11:09

MP4

718.4 MB

22-08-2025

Press Conferences | OCHA , UNITED NATIONS

Famine in Gaza - Tom Fletcher

ENG FRA

Shotlist Story

MR. TOM FLETCHER, UNDER-SECRETARY-GENERAL FOR HUMANITARIAN AFFAIRS AND EMERGENCY RELIEF COORDINATOR

Remarks on Gaza at the UN press briefing and Q&A

Watch the press briefing here: https://webtv.un.org/en/asset/k13/k130jdmvdz

Geneva, 22 August 2025

[AS DELIVERED]

"Please read the IPC report, cover to cover. Read it in sorrow and in anger. Not as words and numbers but as names and lives. Be in no doubt that this is irrefutable testimony.

It is a famine. The Gaza Famine.

It is a famine that we could have prevented, if we had been allowed. Yet food stacks up at borders because of systematic obstruction by Israel.

It is a famine within a few hundred metres of food, in a fertile land.

It is a famine that hits the most vulnerable first. Each with a name, each with a story. That strips people of dignity before it strips them of life. That forces a parent to choose which child to feed. That forces people to risk their lives to seek food.

It is a famine that we repeatedly warned of. But that the international media has not been allowed in to cover. To bear witness.

It is a famine in 2025. A 21st century famine watched over by drones and the most advanced military technology in history.

It is a famine openly promoted by some Israeli leaders as a weapon of war.

It is a famine on all of our watch. Everyone owns this. The Gaza Famine is the world’s famine. It is a famine that asks ‘but what did you do?’ A famine that will and must haunt us all.

It is a predictable and a preventable famine. A famine caused by cruelty, justified by revenge, enabled by indifference and sustained by complicity.

It is a famine that must spur the world to more urgent action. That must shame the world to do better. It is a famine that therefore also asks ‘… and what now will you do?’

My ask, my plea, my demand to Prime Minister Netanyahu and anyone who can reach him:

Enough. Ceasefire. Open the crossings, north and south, all of them. Let us get food and other supplies in, unimpeded and at the massive scale required. End the retribution. It is too late for far too many. But not for everyone in Gaza. Enough. For humanity’s sake, let us in."

Famine in Gaza

Tom Fletcher, United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs, urged the media to read the new Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) report in full, and to see it in human terms, rather than just mere numbers. This report was an irrefutable testimony: famine was unfolding in Gaza now, the famine which could have been prevented if only aid had been allowed in. It was a famine within few hundred meters of food and on fertile land. It was a famine that hit the most vulnerable first, each with a name and with a story, stripping people of dignity before stripping them of life. It was a famine that the humanitarians had repeatedly warned of, but that international media had not been allowed to cover from within. It was a famine in 2025, watched over by drones and other modern technology. It was a famine on everyone’s watch; it was the world’s famine which asked everyone “What did you do?”. It was a predictable and preventable famine, caused by cruelty, enabled by indifference, and sustained by complicity. This famine should shame the world to do better. Mr. Fletcher asked for an immediate ceasefire and for the opening of all crossings to allow for unimpeded aid access. It was too late for far too many, but not for everyone in Gaza. “Enough! For humanity’s sake, let us in,” concluded Mr. Fletcher.

Responding to questions from the media, Mr. Fletcher said this was a moment of collective shame. The international community had been watching it happen in real time, and it would have been even more closely watched had international media been allowed into Gaza. This famine could have been prevented had all the trucks with aid been let in. People in Gaza did not need to read the IPC report; they had known too well their own situation for many weeks and months. It was important to recognize that there was a growing constituency in Israel that supported allowing aid into Gaza.

On 6 August, UN humanitarian agencies and the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation had held a meeting at the US Mission in New York, confirmed Mr. Fletcher. Experienced humanitarians had a know-how and knew how to deliver aid; what others did was up to them, but UN humanitarians had to be allowed to do their job in accordance with the established, tried and tested humanitarian standards.

OCHA was in regular contact with US officials, said Mr. Fletcher, and US President Trump had issued a clear instruction that the starvation in Gaza ought to be ended. Humanitarians would need to be allowed to operate at scale, he reiterated. During the ceasefire earlier this year, 600 to 700 trucks had been brought in Gaza every single day; the same should be allowed to happen now, as this was essential to end the starvation. Commercial access at scale into Gaza was also needed, as well as access for UN humanitarian partners. When calling for unimpeded access into Gaza, it was a call for the entire humanitarian community, including NGO partners.

The new Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) report on famine in Gaza was further discussed at the UN Geneva press briefing that followed: https://www.unognewsroom.org/story/en/2774/un-geneva-press-briefing-22-august-2025-1

Teleprompter

Good morning everyone.

Please read the IPC report cover to cover.

Read it in sorrow and in anger, not as words and numbers, but as names and lives.

Be in no doubt that this is irrefutable testimony.

[Other language spoken]

It is a famine that we could have prevented if we had been allowed yet food stacks up at borders because of systematic obstruction by Israel.

It is a famine within a few 100 metres of food in a fertile land.

It is a famine that hits the most vulnerable first, each with a name, each with a story, that strips people of dignity before it strips them of life, that forces a parent to choose which child to feed, that forces people to risk their lives to seek food.

It is a famine that we repeatedly warned of, but that the international media has not been allowed in to cover to bear witness.

It is a famine in 2025, A 21st century famine watched over by drones and the most advanced military technology in history.

It is a famine openly promoted by some Israeli leaders as a weapon of war.

It is a famine on all of our watch.

Everyone owns this.

The Gaza famine is the world's famine.

It is a famine that asks, but what did you do?

A famine that will and must haunt us all is it is a predictable and a preventable famine.

A famine caused by cruelty, justified by revenge, enabled by indifference, and sustained by complicity.

It is a famine that must spur the world to more urgent action, that must shame the world to do better.

It is a famine that therefore also asks And what now?

[Other language spoken]

My ask, my plea, my demand to Prime Minister Netanyahu and anyone who can reach him.

Enough ceasefire.

Open the crossings North and South, all of them.

Let us get food and other supplies in unimpeded and at the massive scale required.

End the retribution.

It is too late for far too many, but not for everyone in Gaza.

[Other language spoken]

For humanity's sake, let us in.

[Other language spoken]

Thank you very much.

You as Chief Lecher for this remarks.

I'll open the floor to questions, very few questions here in the room, please.

We've got very few minutes, so let me start with Robin is our correspondent of AFP English Language.

[Other language spoken]

Is this is this a moment of shame for the world?

And do you think that Gazans are living under collective punishment of starvation?

Thank you, Robin.

And, and you're right, this is a moment of collective shame.

And I think, I think we all feel that in different ways, we all have to look back as as the international community and think where could we have got this in a different place?

And we've watched it happen in real time.

We've not watched it as closely as we could have done if you'd all been allowed in to cover it, as with the other big moments of famine that many of us can remember through our lifetimes.

And it is, as I say, a famine that could have been prevented.

But there has been that systematic obstruction preventing us from getting those trucks moving at the scale that they need to, preventing us from breaking that blockade that has existed for so much of the of recent months.

Now, I don't know what people in Gaza will be saying this morning.

I doubt they'll be reading this report.

They don't need to read the report.

They know this and they've known it for weeks and months.

[Other language spoken]

Thank you very much.

As many hands.

[Other language spoken]

Israel consistently denies that there's famine, not just the Israeli government.

But if you even see, you know, people asked on the streets, they deny what would you, what would you say maybe to to ordinary Israelis?

I think it's important and, and many of those that I've been in touch with in recent weeks inside Israel, including survivors of the October 7th massacre in Neroz Kibbutz and elsewhere, they want this food to get in.

And I think it's important to recognise that there is a growing constituency in Israel that shares our demand that we must get this food moving in and we must avoid this starvation, that we must end this famine.

I hope that their voices are heard.

I would say to them, as I say to all of you, please read this report.

[Other language spoken]

Read the report cover to cover.

Read it again and be moved to action.

[Other language spoken]

Yeah, the 6th of August there was a meeting in New York of UN humanitarian organisations with the Gaza Humanitarian Fund on collaboration.

Could you please elaborate what this collaboration could be?

[Other language spoken]

So I think you're referring there was a meeting on the 6th of August, a briefing meeting held by the American Embassy, which included a representative of the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, which is running these militarised hubs inside Gaza.

We we know how to distribute aid at the scale needed to end this famine.

Our system of distribution has been systematically dismantled and replaced.

We have the food to deliver at scale.

We have the networks to deliver at scale.

We know how to do this and we need to be allowed to do our work.

What others do is for them.

We need to be allowed to work.

I see Nick coming, Bruce in the New York Times.

[Other language spoken]

Thank you for your briefing.

Israeli policy is underpinned by the United States and by its continuing support for GHF.

Have you seen or had any contact with the administration that shows any sign of shifting their position on this?

We are in very regular contact with American colleagues.

It's notable that President Trump has clearly given an instruction that we must end this starvation.

And I take that seriously, and I know that American colleagues take that seriously, too.

My ask of them is, of course, to let us operate at scale, to use the networks, the resources that we have, the experience that we have.

We do this all over the world, and we've done it in Gaza.

Of course.

You know, when I was there earlier this year in the first quarter during the ceasefire, we were getting IN600700 trucks every day.

[Other language spoken]

We're ready to go, and we're trying to help our American colleagues understand that that is essential to ending this starvation and finding ways to to use their influence and their engagement to that effect.

[Other language spoken]

Could you comment on how the NGO restrictions that Israel is imposing or is threatening to impose is impacting the partners that you work with on the ground since the security implications?

Of that, thank you for raising this because this isn't just about UN access.

We also need commercial access to end this famine, commercial access of scale and we need access for our essential humanitarian partners across the humanitarian movement.

I think the the best reference point actually is the letter that over 100 NGOs wrote last week, which sets out the way in which they are being impeded, very specifically the obstacles that they need to be removed in order to deliver.

And so when we call for unimpeded access through all the crossings, we are calling for that for our entire humanitarian movement.

We need them back on the ground, delivering at scale and in a principled, humanitarian way.

Thank you very, very much, you as Chief Fletcher, for being with us.

Please be reminded of a strict embargo until 11:00.

We will come back at 11:00 on this matter.

I like to say thank you again and come back soon.

And Mr Doctor, Mr Fletcher, thank you.

[Other language spoken]