Can Israel’s ‘Strategic Pause’ and Airdrops Alleviate Gaza Hunger Crisis?

Israel's "strategic pause" and airdrops hope to alleviate the Gaza hunger crisis, but with 43 death from starvation and increasing malnutrition, is this enough?

Gaza Hunger Crisis: Humanitarian Disaster

The Gaza hunger crisis has become catastrophic. The United Nations has reported that one in every five children is malnourished, and the cases of malnourishment are increasing on a daily basis.

In spite of this sobering situation, on July 27, 2025, Israel announced a daily “strategic break” in fighting in three densely populated areas of Gaza, and a resumption of airdrops of aid. While Jordan and UAE planes have already begun bringing in equipment, these planes are not trusted by aid organizations and locals. Mortality continues to rise because of hunger, hospitals are filling, so can these measures stop the hunger crisis unfolding in Gaza? This post examines the depth of the crisis, Israel’s reaction, and if it’s sufficient to save lives.

Depth of the Crisis

The Gaza hunger crisis is not a pending danger—it’s an actual disaster. The World Health Organization (WHO) describes “alarming levels” of malnutrition, with rates on a “dangerous trajectory.” The UN’s Palestinian refugee agency (UNRWA) reports one in every five children in Gaza City malnourished and still rising by the day. The Palestinian Health Ministry also reported 43 fatalities from hunger in the last five days, and WHO reports that more than 50 children have lost their lives due to malnourishment since March 2025. The hunger crisis facing families in Gaza has reached catastrophic levels, with medical professionals referring to conditions in the hospitals where they treat sick children with starvation as “skeletal” children lying in hospital beds.

Dr. Ahmed Al-Farra, the Paediatric Director at Nasser Medical Complex told the Guardian, “We are full in the malnutrition ward. We have a lot of patients; some children even sleep on the floor”. British surgeon Dr. Nick Maynard, who was volunteering at Nasser Hospital, described the hunger emergency in Gaza as “man-made starvation a weapon of war.” He added, “I’ve never witness malnutrition so bad I didn’t even think it was possible in the civilized world. Without urgent help, more will die.”

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The conflict worsens an already desperate situation, at least in Gaza which has sometimes been referred to as an “open-air prison” for the Israeli blockade. Gaza now has much of the basic infrastructure destroyed; it is out of water and electricity, and thousands of families are either hunkered in the tents or remain on the street. According to the World Food Programme (WFP), with 900,000 women and children urgently requiring treatment for malnutrition, with some three in a hundred deliveryfadult meals missed for days now.

Israel’s Response: Strategic Pause and Airdrops

Under international pressure, Israel declared a 10-hour daily “strategic pause” in Gaza City, Deir al-Balah, and Mawasi, from July 27, 2025, to facilitate humanitarian aid. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) announced the halt, which took effect at 10 a.m. local time, to “scale up” deliveries, with no specific end date. Israel also authorized airdrops, with Jordan and the UAE making three parachute drops of 25 tons of aid on Sunday. Aid-laden trucks drove from Israel’s Zikim sector into northern Gaza, according to AFP reports.

These measures follow months of limited aid. Since March 2025, Israel restricted most deliveries, citing pressure on Hamas to free hostages. In May, limited aid resumed under the US-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), but Israel alleges—unsubstantiated—that Hamas steals UN aid, preferring GHF. The hunger crisis in Gaza has escalated, with more than 1,000 killed near GHF distribution centers, evidencing the mayhem of aid availability.

Aid Delivery Challenges

How Bad Is the Gaza Hunger Crisis?

Before the war, already Gaza’s 2.2 million inhabitants suffered under Israel’s blockade. Since October 2024, the hunger crisis in Gaza has escalated. Truckloads of aid, which had been reduced weekly from pre-war levels of 3,000 to around 70 per day, are well below the 500–600 required, according to the UN. This has resulted in rampant starvation, infections, and compromised immune systems. Pediatric consultant Dr. Hani Al-Faliti at Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital explained, “Infections and dehydration are on the increase. Some children die just because they and their mothers aren’t consuming sufficient food.”

Gaza journalists, themselves in their 22nd month of reporting the war, are also suffering. One explained to The Guardian, “Hunger leaves us no energy to report.” According to news articles from agencies, the hunger crisis in Gaza has made all UN staff “walking corpses.”

Will Israel’s Actions Have Consequences?

Aid agencies are unambiguous: Israel’s actions are only a drop in the ocean. The Gaza hunger crisis requires far more than airdrops and limited pauses. Joe English from UNICEF told CNN, “Airdrops are primarily targeted to remote areas with plenty of open space, airdrops do not work in dense Gaza.” Ciaran Donnelly of the International Rescue Committee called the airdrops “a bizarre distraction,” adding they would not provide the scale or, the volume or quality of aid just to alleviate and address the scale of the crisis. UNRWA’s Philippe Lazzarini cautioned that airdrops are “expensive, inefficient, and can kill starving people if disorganized.” He continued, “Trucks are simpler, faster, cheaper, and safer.

Response to Israel’s action from Bushra Khalidi at Oxfam was positive, but Khalidi added, “Starvation is not going to be alleviated with a few trucks or airdrops.” We need a permanent ceasefire, full access, open crossings, and massive, sustained aid flow.” The crisis of hunger in Gaza requires consistency, but Israel has not explained how long the pause or corridors will continue. NGOs comment that pre-war aid volumes—500–600 trucks per day, coordinated by UNRWA via 400 distribution points—are required to undo the crisis.

Ground Realities: Initial Reactions

Only a day after the announcement made by Israel, it is still early for significant changes. The Guardian has, though, reported a 20% overnight fall in flour prices, a faint hint of relief. Palestinians are still wary, not trusting unkept ceasefire vows. Locals affirm that food prices and availability have not changed much so far. The hunger crisis in Gaza continues to take lives every day, and cases of malnutrition are increasing.

Doctors warn that reversing starvation isn’t simple. Someone who is acutely malnourished will risk refeeding syndrome if fed. After prolonged hunger, any feeding would need specialized care. Dr. Thaer Ahmad, who worked on medical missions in Gaza, said, “We’re worried about complications for those deprived so long.” The Gaza hunger crisis’s depth means quick fixes won’t suffice.

Why the Gaza Hunger Crisis Persists

The Gaza hunger crisis is tied to the war’s broader dynamics. Israel’s blockade and military attacks have disabled delivery of aid, and Hamas’s reported interference makes distribution more difficult. More than 1,000 fatalities at GHF centers illustrate the risks of uncoordinated aid. Israel’s transition to permit increased UN intervention is encouraging but unclear—UNRWA, prohibited from operating in Gaza in January 2025, has 6,000 truckloads of aid waiting in Jordan and Egypt. The WFP estimates it has sufficient to feed Gaza for three months, but access is the chokepoint.

International pressure is building. The US and Israel walked away from Hamas ceasefire negotiations on July 25, 2025, on grounds of no progress. The UN Security Council and non-governmental organizations are urging an end to full-scale hostilities to tackle the Gaza hunger crisis properly. Without a medical hospital, short-term airdrops and palliatives will be tokenistic in nature.

The Human Cost: Stories from the Ground

The hunger crisis in Gaza is not just statistics—it’s lives disintegrating. One Gaza journalist portrayed it as “not hunger but the gradual assassination of life, capacity, and humanity.” Mothers lose babies through miscarriage or premature birth from starvation, giving birth to frail infants with compromised immune systems. Hospitals such as Nasser and Al-Aqsa are at capacity, with physicians taking “skin and bones” patients on hospital floors for lack of room.

Dr. Mohammad Abu Mugaisib of Médecins Sans Frontières explained to The New York Times, “I live on one meal a day, sometimes every two days—not because I can’t get money to buy food, but because markets are bare.” His testimony resonates with desperation fueling the Gaza hunger crisis, where even aid workers are starving.

Ultimately, Israel Was Forced to Yield?

Israel’s “strategic pause” and airdrops represent a step in the direction of solving the Gaza hunger crisis, but not enough. With 43 starvation-related deaths in five days, more than 50 children lost to malnutrition, and one in five children malnourished, the crisis requires immediate, mass measures. Humanitarian agencies demand a sustained ceasefire, open borders, and 500–600 truckloads of daily aid to roll back the “man-made famine.” Palestinians, wary following unkept promises, notice scant improvement on the ground. The hunger crisis in Gaza is a human rights disaster that probes international will—stop-gap measures won’t suffice. A concerted, long-term effort is needed to save lives and restore dignity. Israel’s “strategic pause” and airdrops are meant to alleviate the Gaza hunger crisis, but with 43 starvation fatalities and increasing malnutrition, aid agencies call for a complete ceasefire and massive aid trickle.