ISTANBUL

The death toll from malnutrition caused by Israel’s starvation policy in Gaza has risen to 453 people since October 2023, the enclave's Health Ministry said on Tuesday.

A ministry statement said 150 children were among Palestinians who died of malnutrition and famine in the territory, with food and other essential supplies blocked by a longstanding Israeli blockade.

According to the ministry, 175 people, including 35 children, have died of starvation since the UN-backed Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) declared famine in Gaza this August.

On Aug. 22, the IPC declared famine in Gaza City and warned it would spread to central and southern Gaza by the end of September.

Israel has kept all border crossings with Gaza closed since March 2, blocking humanitarian aid and pushing the enclave into famine despite relief trucks piling up at its borders.

Israel occasionally allows very limited amounts of aid to enter, but those shipments fall short of meeting basic needs and have not ended the famine. Most trucks have been looted by gangs that the Gaza administration accuses Israel of protecting.

The Israeli aid scheme has also been accused of deliberately setting up civilian aid seekers to be targeted by Israeli forces.

The Israeli army has killed over 66,000 Palestinians, most of them women and children, in Gaza since October 2023. The relentless bombardment has rendered the enclave all but uninhabitable and led to starvation and the spread of disease.