Euro-Med Monitor refutes Israeli occupation’s narrative on Gaza famine

GAZA, Aug. 11 (YPA) – The Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Monitor has refuted the Israeli occupation’s narrative regarding famine in the Gaza Strip, saying that the occupation relied on a selective reading of 2026 data from UNICEF’s nutrition cluster.

In a statement, the Monitor explained that the widely cited 0.5% figure was based solely on the weight-for-height indicator, while the mid-upper arm circumference indicator showed a rate of 1.3%—the same rate when both indicators were taken into account. This means that one in every 77 children under the age of five suffered from acute malnutrition during the study period.

The statement noted that the stunting rate stood at 12.2%, or roughly one in eight children, while the study covered only 83% of Gaza’s population, with more than 358,000 people excluded due to security restrictions.

It stressed that the study, conducted over a limited period in June 2026, did not rule out the existence of famine, noting that famine assessments rely on multiple indicators, including food consumption, malnutrition and mortality.

The statement further pointed to the latest Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) reports issued in July, which projected severe levels of food insecurity for around 1.4 million people through the end of the year, while more than 74,000 children are expected to require treatment for acute malnutrition by April 2027.

It emphasized that the crime of starvation is not contingent on an official declaration of famine or on reaching a specific malnutrition threshold. Rather, it is committed through the deliberate deprivation of civilians of the means necessary for their survival and the obstruction of humanitarian aid.