Gaza children face severe malnutrition and starvation amid shortages As fighting rages in Gaza, the enclave is facing a dire humanitarian emergency, with a report from an international authority on hunger warning this week that “famine is imminent” in northern Gaza and that escalation of the war could push half of the territory’s 2.3 million people to the brink of starvation. Thousands of children, a more vulnerable population, are facing severe malnutrition as Israel's near-complete blockade on Gaza continues to restrict the flow of humanitarian aid coming in from Egypt.