No longer famine in Gaza, says hunger monitor, but emergency remains

STORY: There is no longer famine in Gaza, a global hunger monitor said on Friday, but the situation remains critical.That's after Israel, which controls all access to Gaza, allowed in more aid and food supplies following a fragile October 10 ceasefire between it and Hamas. Doctors in Nasser Hospital, southern Gaza, fear for Arjwan al-Dahini, aged four.She's critically ill with severe acute malnutrition, the most dangerous stage of hunger. :: FileThe latest assessment by the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification, or IPC,comes four months after it said nearly a quarter of Palestinians in Gaza were experiencing famine, which Israel denied. That's more than half a million people.Arjwan's mother Hanin says the girl still weighs no more than 11 pounds (five kilograms) and her growth has stagnated. Her husband had his arm amputated so he can't work and they have no income."Arjwan started to get tired from the beginning of the war. Arjwan was fine, her weight was excellent, she used to walk, she used to move, she used to play with her brothers. All of this stopped.":: FileThe IPC described "a severe and ongoing humanitarian crisis" that called for a "sustained, expanded, and consistent humanitarian and commercial access."It warned that the entire Gaza Strip risked falling into famine in a worst-case scenario of renewed hostilities and a halt in aid.:: COGAT Handout:: FileCOGAT, the Israeli military agency that coordinates aid, rejected the IPC's latest report, calling it a "false depiction" of the situation on the ground.Israel's Foreign Ministry said far more aid was going in than it reflected.Six-year-old Yasser Arafat is also critically ill. His older brother died of malnutrition and his father also suffers from it.His mother Iman says the family hasn't been able to buy eggs or other high-protein foods."My son isn't active. My son doesn't play with other children or run around like other children do. He’s short - he's not getting taller. His head is bigger than the rest of him.":: FileThe United Nations and aid groups warned on Wednesday that Israel must lift obstacles to aid entering, such as a "vague, arbitrary, and highly politicized" registration process.Jolien Veldwijk of the CARE aid agency: “The situation in Gaza, unfortunately, across the Strip has not improved as much as one would hope since the ceasefire started about two months ago. It's actually very painful to see that, still, our humanitarian supplies are not coming in and not providing supplies for free to the people of Gaza.”The head of al-Shifa hospital Mohammed Abu Selmia says doctors have seen an improvement since the ceasefire but malnutrition is still widespread.Food is limited and scarce and doesn't meet the needs of malnourished patients, he says, especially children, women and the chronically ill.:: FileThough no famine remains, the IPC said more than 100,000 people in Gaza are suffering catastrophic conditions, described as an extreme lack of food, starvation and significantly increased risks of acute malnutrition and death.That number should decline to around 1,900 people by next April, it said.

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