Hunger is tightening its grip on the besieged Gaza Strip, said the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), warning of an escalating humanitarian catastrophe as food supplies run dangerously low.

In a statement, UNRWA reported that desperation among Gaza’s residents, including many children, is growing.

"People are hoping to get some food to survive," the agency said, describing scenes of long lines during warm meal distributions by charitable organizations.

The situation worsened further as the World Food Programme (WFP) announced yesterday that its food stocks in Gaza are now fully depleted.

UNRWA also confirmed that its flour supplies ran out earlier this week, leaving hundreds of thousands without a critical food staple.

Meanwhile, UNRWA reported that nearly 3,000 of its aid trucks loaded with lifesaving supplies are waiting to enter Gaza but remain blocked due to the ongoing siege.

"The siege must stop," the agency stressed, calling urgently on all parties to allow immediate and unrestricted humanitarian access to avert an even deeper crisis.

The growing hunger emergency comes amid continued displacement, bombardment, and widespread destruction, exacerbating an already catastrophic situation for Gaza’s two million residents.

Nearly 51,500 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza in a brutal Israeli onslaught since October 2023, most of them women and children.