'Tailor-made for Hamas': Foreign Ministry, COGAT slam IPC report about famine in Gaza

Both the Foreign Ministry and COGAT issued statements condemning the United Nations' IPC reports of famine in Gaza, claiming it "changed its own global standard."

The Foreign Affairs Ministry on Friday issued a statement condemning the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification's (IPC) report declaring a famine in Gaza, calling it “a tailor-made fabricated report to fit Hamas’s fake campaign.”

“Unbelievably, the IPC twisted its own rules and ignored its own criteria just to produce false accusations against Israel: the IPC changed its own global standard, cutting the 30% threshold to 15% for this report only, and totally ignoring its second criterion of death rate, solely to serve Hamas’s fake campaign,” the ministry wrote.

The statement added that the “entire IPC document is based on Hamas lies laundered through organizations with vested interests.”

“There is no famine in Gaza,” the ministry declared.

It also explained: “Over 100,000 trucks of aid have entered Gaza since the start of the war, and in recent weeks a massive influx of aid has flooded the Strip with staple foods and caused a sharp decline in food prices, which have plummeted in the markets."

"The laws of supply and demand don’t lie – the IPC does. Every forecast the IPC has made regarding Gaza during the war has proven baseless and completely false. This assessment, too, will be thrown into the despicable trash bin of political documents.”

COGAT also rejects the IPC report on Gaza

The Coordination of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT) also addressed the IPC report, “categorically rejecting the claim of famine in the Gaza Strip, and particularly in Gaza City.”

“Previous reports and assessments by the IPC have repeatedly been proven inaccurate and do not reflect the reality on the ground. The report deliberately disregards data that was provided to its authors in a meeting held prior to its publication, and completely overlooks the efforts made in recent weeks to stabilize the humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip,” the statement read.

"The IPC report is based on partial and unreliable sources, many of them affiliated with Hamas, and blatantly ignores the facts and the extensive humanitarian efforts led by the State of Israel and its international partners,” Major-General Ghassan Alian, head of COGAT, said.

“We expect the international community to act responsibly and not be swept away by false narratives and unfounded propaganda, but rather to examine the complete data and the facts on the ground," he added.

"The IPC report is not only biased but also serves Hamas' propaganda campaign," the agency said.

Humanitarian aid drops prices of food in Gaza

Internal data from the Israeli security establishment shows a sharp decline in the prices of basic goods in Gaza following the massive influx of humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip in recent weeks.

According to the data, which was presented to decision-makers, prices of essential products in Gaza’s markets have dropped by dozens of percentage points.

Officials say the price cuts reflect the impact of continuous aid convoys, which have flooded the Strip with flour, rice, sugar, and other staples.

For example, a kilogram of flour, which cost between NIS 80-100 about three weeks ago, is now priced at NIS 18; a kilogram of sugar, which costs NIS 300, now costs NIS 50; and a kilogram of pasta dropped from NIS 100 to NIS 10.

However, a global hunger monitor determined on Friday thatGaza City and surrounding areas are officially suffering from famine, and it will likely spread.

The Integrated Food Security Phase Classification system said 514,000 people - nearly a quarter of Palestinians in Gaza - are experiencing famine, with the number due to rise to 641,000 by the end of September.

Some 280,000 of those people are in a northern region covering Gaza City - known as Gaza governorate - which the IPC said was in famine following nearly two years of war between Israel and Palestinian militants Hamas.