Gaza in state of 'man-made famine' by Israel: EU foreign policy chief

By Beyza Binnur Donmez

GENEVA (AA) - The EU foreign policy chief on Monday warned that Gaza is already "in a state of famine," saying the situation is "entirely man-made" by Israel.

"In Gaza, we are no longer on the brink of famine, we are in a state of famine affecting thousands of people," Josep Borrell told the opening ceremony of the two-day European Humanitarian Forum 2024 in Brussels.

"This is unacceptable," he stressed, adding: "Starvation is used as a weapon of war."

Borrell warned that the besieged strip is "becoming a territory without any kind of order," due to conflict that started last October.

"The territory of Gaza is very quickly becoming a territory without any kind of order, is more and more looking like Haiti, Somalia, Syria, or Mosul. This will be the first failed state before having existed," he said.

Israel launched a destructive military campaign in Gaza in response to an Oct. 7 attack by the Palestinian group, Hamas, which Tel Aviv said killed less than 1,200 people.

More than 31,700 Palestinians have since been killed, the majority of the 2.3 million population has been displaced and many are starving amid a worsening humanitarian catastrophe.

- Humanitarian lifeboat is 'sinking'

The EU commissioner for crisis management, for his part, warned that humanitarian aid is far away from meeting the "alarming" needs resulting from the "very high number" of conflicts, saying the lifeboat is "sinking."

"The lifeboat of humanitarian aid is increasingly helpless against the growing alarming of humanitarian needs. Make no mistake, this lifeboat is sinking. And the time is running out for us to fix it," Janez Lenacic said.

"In 2023, we witnessed the highest number of active conflicts since the end of the World War II, becoming more protracted and complex with horrific consequences, as we can see from Gaza to Ukraine, to Sudan, and beyond."

He urged not only EU member states but other countries as well to adopt the goal of allocating 0.07% of their gross national income for humanitarian aid.

The official warned that the relief efforts are "facing an alarming humanitarian funding crisis."

"We are all and our colleagues in the field in particular daily, making extremely difficult decisions, decisions about life and death, about what to fund and who to prioritize."