Situation in Gaza 'increasingly desperate and chaotic': UN food agency

 The circumstance in the Gaza Strip is "progressively frantic and turbulent," an UN food organization official said Thursday.

After a recent visit to Gaza, Deputy Executive Director of the World Food Program (WFP) Carl Skau told reporters in New York, "We managed to do during the seven-day pause -- a survey, and what we found there was that half of the population are starving."

According to Skau, the grim reality is that nine out of ten people do not eat enough or eat every day. "Where the next meal is going to come from," they do not know.

He emphasized that the humanitarian operation is "really on the brink of collapse" and that it is impossible to deliver in an orderly manner given the circumstances. In response to Hamas' cross-border attack on Oct. 7, Israel has bombarded the Gaza Strip from the air and land, imposed a siege, and launched a ground offensive. "What we really need is to step up the volumes," he added.

According to the health authorities in Gaza, the Israeli attack has resulted in the deaths of at least 18,787 Palestinians and the injuries of 50,897 others.

The Israeli loss of life in the Hamas assault remains at 1,200, while 135 prisoners are as yet held by the Palestinian gathering in Gaza, as per official figures.