Gaza food access improves, but living conditions remain dire.
Antoine Renard, the WFP representative in Palestine, said in an online press conference that access to food in the Gaza Strip has improved significantly since the ceasefire on October 10, but civilians continue to endure very difficult living conditions across the besieged territory.
He said that WFP activities are now fully operational, adding that “all WFP distribution networks are up and running as we speak.”
The WFP representative in Palestine also said that the humanitarian agency “has managed to cover more than a million people with food packages and wheat flour.”
Renard also pointed to improvements, saying that the latest thing that has really improved is that the level of food support has increased with the flow of food aid.
According to the report, while the updated findings of the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) are expected to be released soon, Renard said that the situation has changed and “I can confirm that people are receiving on average two meals a day, which is very different.”
However, he stressed that “access to food alone is not enough,” warning that “living conditions in the Gaza Strip remain very dire.”
The WFP representative in Palestine pointed to the lack of safe cooking infrastructure, saying that “currently, about 90 percent of the cooking facilities are just garbage and wood.”
Dr. Yousef Abu al-Rish, the deputy health minister for the Palestinian Authority in the Gaza Strip, had previously pointed out the many challenges facing the health system in the Strip, saying: “The indirect killing of the people in this area continues; Because the occupying regime is preventing medical equipment and specialized medical teams from entering Gaza.