Foreign Affairs Minister Calls Gaza Famine ‘Unfolding’ as Aid Curbs Deepen Crisis

August 12, 2025

RED FM News Desk

Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand warned Tuesday that a “famine is unfolding” in Gaza, and new Israeli restrictions on aid will worsen the humanitarian crisis.Her remarks followed a statement from Global Affairs Canada condemning Israel’s recent killing of several journalists in Gaza.

Anand highlighted the severe suffering in Gaza, calling for urgent action to stop and reverse starvation.

She echoed a joint statement from two dozen foreign ministers across Europe, Asia, and Australia, which expressed concern that Israel’s tightening controls on international aid organizations would further exacerbate the crisis.

The Israeli government denies claims of widespread starvation, despite strict limits on aid entry and distribution.

Last week, a coalition of UN agencies and partners working in the West Bank, East Jerusalem, and Gaza called for an end to Israeli policies set to begin in September.

These policies require aid groups to share sensitive information about their Palestinian employees or face termination. The restrictions also threaten aid organizations with consequences for publicly criticizing Israeli government policies.

Those not registered under the new system have been barred from sending essential aid, including medicine, food, and hygiene supplies, into Gaza.

Anand and her counterparts urged Israel to authorize all international NGO shipments and allow humanitarian actors to operate freely using all possible routes to deliver critical supplies.

While Israel blames the UN for delays in aid distribution, the UN contends that Israeli inspections have been slow and that trucks are often offloaded in dangerous locations.

The joint statement emphasized that humanitarian aid must remain apolitical and that new restrictions risk forcing key NGOs to withdraw, further worsening conditions in the Occupied Palestinian Territories.

This call for action came shortly after Canada condemned the Israeli military’s killing of Al Jazeera journalists and rejected claims labeling one reporter as a Hamas operative.