Gaza Famine Warning Report Retracted after Pressure from US Govt – Report 

Famine is imminent successful bluish Gaza. (Photo: via UNRWA)

By Palestine Chronicle Staff  

The petition for retraction of the study by the US-funded Famine Early Warning Systems Network followed nationalist disapproval of its findings from the US ambassador to Israel.

A nutrient crises monitoring enactment withdrew a caller study this week informing of imminent famine successful bluish Gaza aft the United States authorities asked for its retraction, the Associated Press has reported, citing US officials.

The petition for retraction of the study by the US-funded Famine Early Warning Systems Network (FEWS NET) followed nationalist disapproval of its findings from the US ambassador to Israel, reported AP.

It said that the report’s finding of famine nether Israel’s “near-total blockade” would beryllium “a rebuke of Israel,” the US’ adjacent ally.

Inaccuracy Claims

Ambassador Jacob Lew connected Tuesday issued a connection successful which helium claimed FEWS NET “relies connected information that is outdated and inaccurate.”

The US ambassador is boasting of however good Israel has ethnically cleansed northbound Gaza, expelling oregon sidesplitting astir each Palestinians there.

FEWS NET is the Famine Early Warning Systems Network. It published a study informing of famine successful northbound Gaza, nether Israeli blockade.

However,… https://t.co/eyBNcnBY1U pic.twitter.com/87cscRG1Pn

— Ben Norton (@BenjaminNorton) December 25, 2024

Alleging that the study was “irresponsible,” Lew said that the civilian colonisation successful bluish Gaza was “in the scope of 7,000-15,000, not 65,000-75,000 which is the ground of this report,” adding that COGAT estimated betwixt “5,000 and 9,00” and UNRWA estimation figures of betwixt 10,000 and 15,000.

AP reported that FEWS NET, which is funded by the US Agency for International Development (USAID), had “confirmed” that it had “retracted its famine warning” and expected to rerelease the study successful January “with updated information and analysis.”

Numbers Dispute

The study noted that the “dispute points successful portion to the trouble of assessing the grade of starvation successful mostly isolated bluish Gaza,” wherever thousands of Palestinians person been forced to fly successful caller weeks nether an Israeli siege connected the territory. The blockade has severely hampered the transportation of food, h2o and aid.

‘No Food, No Water’ – UNRWA Warns Besieged successful Northern Gaza ‘Will Die of Hunger’

According to AP, FEWS NET “said successful its withdrawn study that unless Israel changes its policy, it expects the fig of radical dying of starvation and related ailments successful northbound Gaza to scope betwixt 2 and 15 per time sometime betwixt January and March.”

The internationally recognized “mortality threshold for famine is 2 oregon much deaths a time per 10,000 people,” the AP study added.

FEWS said successful its report, according to AP, that “its famine appraisal holds adjacent if arsenic fewer arsenic 10,000 radical remain.”

Criticism

The petition for the study to beryllium withdrawn has been met with condemnation from quality rights officials.

Oxfam America’s Director of Peace and Security, Scott Paul, said Ambassador Lew has “leveraged his governmental powerfulness to undermine the enactment of this adept agency,” the study said.

‘Beyond Miserable’ – Israel Blocks UN Attempts to Deliver Aid to Northern Gaza 

AP quoted Kenneth Roth, a erstwhile enforcement manager of Human Rights Watch, arsenic saying “The full constituent of creating FEWS is to person a radical of experts marque assessments astir imminent famine that are untainted by governmental considerations.”

He pointed retired that “It definite looks similar USAID is allowing governmental considerations — the Biden administration’s interest astir backing Israel’s starvation strategy — to interfere.”

Only 12 Trucks Allowed In

According to Oxfam, conscionable 12 trucks were allowed to present nutrient and h2o to bluish Gaza since the commencement of October.

“Of the meagre 34 trucks of nutrient and h2o fixed support to participate the North Gaza Governorate implicit the past 2.5 months, deliberate delays and systematic obstructions by the Israeli subject meant that conscionable 12 managed to administer assistance to starving Palestinian civilians,” said Oxfam successful a statement.

🚨 Sally Abi-Khalil, Oxfam’s Middle East Director: “The concern successful Gaza is apocalyptic… It's abhorrent that contempt planetary instrumentality being truthful publically violated by Israel… satellite leaders proceed to bash nothing”.

Read afloat property release: https://t.co/Hjmp3O7maS pic.twitter.com/X24daV9IKf

— Oxfam (@oxfamgb) December 23, 2024

“It is abhorrent that contempt planetary instrumentality being truthful publically violated by Israel and starvation being utilized relentlessly arsenic a limb of war, satellite leaders proceed to bash nothing,” said Sally Abi-Khalil, Oxfam’s Middle East and North Africa Director.

Oxfam noted that past period the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) warned that determination is simply a beardown likelihood that famine is already occurring successful the northbound and the hazard of famine persists crossed the full of Gaza.

(The Palestine Chronicle)