Amnesty International has accused Israel of implementing a deliberate policy of starvation against Palestinians in the Gaza Strip. The organization asserts that the severe hunger and disease afflicting Gaza are not incidental outcomes of military operations but the result of intentional actions designed to inflict conditions leading to the physical destruction of the Palestinian population.
Erika Guevara Rosas, Senior Director for Research, Advocacy, Policy, and Campaigns at Amnesty International, stated, “As Israeli authorities threaten to launch a full-scale ground invasion of Gaza City, the testimonies we have collected are far more than accounts of suffering; they are a searing indictment of an international system that has granted Israel a license to torment Palestinians with near-total impunity for decades.” She emphasized the necessity for an immediate, unconditional lifting of the blockade and a sustained ceasefire to address the humanitarian crisis. ([amnesty.org](https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2025/08/israel-opt-new-testimonies-provide-compelling-evidence-that-israels-starvation-of-palestinians-in-gaza-is-a-deliberate-policy/?utm_source=openai))
Amnesty International’s findings are based on interviews with 19 displaced Palestinians residing in makeshift camps and medical staff treating malnourished children in Gaza City. These accounts reveal the catastrophic impact of Israel’s blockade, particularly on vulnerable groups such as children, individuals with disabilities or chronic illnesses, the elderly, and pregnant women. ([amnesty.org](https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2025/08/israel-opt-new-testimonies-provide-compelling-evidence-that-israels-starvation-of-palestinians-in-gaza-is-a-deliberate-policy/?utm_source=openai))
One interviewee, a four-month pregnant mother named Hadeel, expressed her fears: “I panic just thinking about the potential impact of my own hunger on the baby’s health… and even if the baby is born healthy, what life awaits it, amidst displacement, bombs, tents.” ([amnesty.org](https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2025/08/israel-opt-new-testimonies-provide-compelling-evidence-that-israels-starvation-of-palestinians-in-gaza-is-a-deliberate-policy/?utm_source=openai))
Reports from Save the Children indicate that 40% of pregnant or breastfeeding women who sought assistance in their clinics in Gaza were malnourished. Additionally, nearly one in five children under the age of five in Gaza City are acutely malnourished. ([apnews.com](https://apnews.com/article/0549e843c24fe7f20f1e7ce085502450?utm_source=openai))
The United Nations has documented over 12,000 cases of acute malnutrition among children under five in July alone, with 2,500 being severe. Despite increasing international concern and warnings from the UN, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has denied there is a hunger crisis, claiming reports of starvation are fabrications by Hamas. ([apnews.com](https://apnews.com/article/0549e843c24fe7f20f1e7ce085502450?utm_source=openai))
Amnesty International’s report underscores the urgent need for international intervention to address the humanitarian crisis in Gaza. The organization calls for the immediate lifting of the blockade, a sustained ceasefire, and the facilitation of humanitarian aid to alleviate the suffering of the Palestinian population. ([amnesty.org](https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2025/08/israel-opt-new-testimonies-provide-compelling-evidence-that-israels-starvation-of-palestinians-in-gaza-is-a-deliberate-policy/?utm_source=openai))