World Food Programme reduces aid in Gaza amid warnings of food catastrophe

The World Food Programme announced a major reduction in its food aid to Gaza starting October 1, 2026, due to a severe funding shortage. The number of monthly aid recipients will drop from 1.5 million to 1.1 million people, and direct food assistance will decrease from 1.1 million to 600,000. Warnings indicate that 1.4 million people (67% of the population) face acute food insecurity.

The United Nations World Food Programme announced the implementation of large-scale cuts to its food aid for the Gaza Strip, effective October 1, 2026, due to a severe funding shortage. The program's emergency coordinator in Gaza, Willy Nyiko, explained that the reductions include a decrease in total monthly aid recipients from 1.5 million people (as of last August) to about 1.1 million people. Direct food assistance (parcels, flour, bread, hot meals) will also decline from 1.1 million to just 600,000 people. The cash support program is expected to be limited to about 500,000 people per month, following previous cuts of 40% in July that affected 375,000 people. These reductions coincide with warnings from the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) that over 1.4 million people (67% of Gaza's population) face acute levels of food insecurity between July and December 2026, with 212,000 people remaining in emergency conditions. The program warns that declining humanitarian support could lead to 90% of Gaza's population facing high levels of acute food insecurity by the end of the year.