By Nadine Osman
London, (The Muslim News): Fourteen of the fifteen members of the UN Security Council, with the United States standing alone in dissent, have declared that the famine engulfing Gaza is a “manmade crisis.” The Council warned that the use of starvation as a weapon of war is explicitly banned under international humanitarian law.
On Wednesday, the Council called for an immediate ceasefire, the release of all hostages, a surge in humanitarian aid, and for Israel to lift all restrictions on aid. “Famine in Gaza must be stopped immediately,” they said. “Time is of the essence. The humanitarian emergency must be addressed without delay, and Israel must reverse course.”
The declaration came as Gaza City and surrounding areas were officially confirmed to be in famine by the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC), the world’s leading hunger monitor. The IPC said 514,000 people — nearly a quarter of Gaza’s population — are affected, with the number expected to rise to 641,000 by the end of September. This is the first officially declared famine in the Middle East.
Israel, however, rejected the assessment and on Wednesday asked the IPC to retract its findings. Israeli officials dismissed the report as biased. They said it was based on incomplete data provided largely by Hamas and argued it failed to account for what they described as a recent influx of food aid.
At the same Security Council meeting, acting US Ambassador to the UN Dorothy Shea echoed these doubts. She questioned the credibility and integrity of the IPC’s methodology. “It doesn’t pass the test on either,” she told the 15-member council. “We all recognise that hunger is a real issue in Gaza and that there are significant humanitarian needs which must be met. Addressing those needs is a priority for the United States.”
Even as debates played out in New York, the violence on the ground in Gaza continued unabated. On Wednesday alone, Israeli forces killed at least 51 Palestinians, including 12 shot dead while waiting for food aid. Gaza’s death toll has now climbed to 62,895 killed and 158,927 wounded since October 2023.
Strikes and shootings by Israeli forces targeted aid distribution sites, homes, and tents sheltering displaced families across Gaza City, Khan Younis, and central Gaza. Witnesses also reported the demolition of civilian properties. Aid agencies warn that the famine is rapidly worsening, with starvation being used as a deliberate tactic of war.
The violence has spread beyond Gaza. In the occupied West Bank, illegal Israeli settlers attacked Palestinian shepherd Khaled Ghara in Kafr Malik, east of Ramallah, beating him and stealing 300 of his sheep.
Rights groups say such attacks are part of a broader effort to displace Palestinian communities. In July alone, the Palestinian Commission Against the Wall and Settlements recorded 1,201 settler and army attacks. Since October 2023, at least 1,016 Palestinians have been killed and over 7,000 wounded in the West Bank.
Meanwhile, political manoeuvring over the war continues in Washington. Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair and Donald Trump’s former Middle East envoy Jared Kushner joined the US President for a high-level policy meeting on Gaza. According to a senior White House official, the talks addressed food aid, hostages, and post-war planning and were described as a “routine policy meeting”.
It is important to note that the Tony Blair Institute (TBI) was involved in developing a post-war vision for Gaza that included a “Trump Riviera” concept inspired by Dubai, alongside proposals for a manufacturing zone named after Elon Musk. However, the Institute defending its involvement said, “The TBI team engages with many groups on post-war Gaza concepts but was not involved in authoring this plan.”
In Britain, Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey announced he will boycott Donald Trump’s state banquet during the US President’s mid-September visit, citing concerns over Washington’s stance on Gaza. He said he and his wife, Emily, had “spent all summer thinking about this” and “prayed about it,” deciding that declining the invitation was the most effective way to send a message to both Trump and Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer.
[Photo: Palestinians displaced in the city of Gaza are viewed trying to meet their daily water needs by filling containers with water distributed by tanker trucks at the makeshift tents where they are staying, in Gaza City, Gaza on August 29, 2025. As Israel’s devastating attacks on the Gaza Strip continue unabated, the humanitarian crisis in the region is deepening due to the imposed embargo. Photojournalist: Khames Alrefi/AA]
