Gaza City, July 27 (RHC)-- The NGO Action Against Hunger has denounced the serious food crisis in the Gaza Strip, after more than nine months under siege and attacks by the Israeli army.  Following the start of the military offensive against the coastal enclave on 7 October last year, famine reached unprecedented levels in Gaza’s modern history, it warned in a statement.

The NGO announced an increase in aid to “mitigate the impact of the massive conflict-driven displacement that has affected the entire population of Gaza.”  The territory’s agricultural sector has faced immense disruptions in recent years due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Ukrainian crisis and climate change, an expert from the group said, as quoted in the statement.

However, since October, the situation has deteriorated due to the blockade and destruction of infrastructure and farmland, he said.  Action Against Hunger noted that 41 percent of Gaza consists of agricultural land, but according to satellite images analysed by the UN, 57 percent of it was damaged by the aggression.

“Orchards, gardens, vegetable plots, grain and wheat fields were devastated,” he said.  Also almost 33 percent of greenhouses, 46 percent of wells and almost 65 percent of solar panels, as well as more than 2,300 agricultural infrastructures, were totally or partially destroyed, it warned.

The NGO estimated that even if hostilities cease, the damage to the agricultural sector will have long-term negative consequences for food production due to soil contamination and unexploded ordnance.

Large-scale displacement also has a devastating impact on agricultural production and has led to a significant increase in food prices, he warned.  For these reasons, he reiterated his call for an immediate, permanent and total ceasefire in the territory.