WFP to cut Gaza aid for 500,000 Palestinians amid funding crisis

The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) will end monthly assistance to 500,000 Palestinians in Gaza because of a severe funding shortfall, raising fresh concerns about food insecurity in the war-battered territory.

The agency announced on Monday that the reductions would leave around 1.1 million people in Gaza receiving monthly food or cash assistance, with the amount of support also being cut.

Despite some improvements following a US-brokered ceasefire, humanitarian conditions remain extremely difficult, with widespread displacement, continued airstrikes and limited access to permanent housing.

“People are not safe. Airstrikes continue on a daily basis. People continue to be displaced,” WFP country director Shaun Hughes told AFP at the agency’s office in east Jerusalem.

“Almost everybody remains without a permanent home to live in. And the humanitarian conditions are brutal,” he added.

According to the latest assessments cited by Hughes, approximately 1.4 million people, representing two-thirds of Gaza’s population, remain acutely food insecure and require humanitarian assistance to survive.

Food Parcels and Cash Assistance Reduced

The WFP said its funding difficulties had forced it to reduce both the number of people receiving assistance and the size of the support provided to families.

Under the revised arrangements, families receiving food aid will get one food parcel instead of two, along with a smaller quantity of wheat flour.

Meanwhile, approximately 75,000 families receiving cash assistance will see their monthly payments reduced from 1,250 shekels to 750 shekels, equivalent to a fall from around $400 to $240.

Hughes said the agency had previously expanded its operations to reach between 1.5 million and 1.8 million people every month following the ceasefire.

“This has been a lifeline. But now, rather than being able to sustain and scale up that assistance, we’re actually having to reduce it,” he said.

He stressed that the cuts were driven by a lack of funding rather than an inability to deliver food.

Funding Gap Threatens Humanitarian Operations

The WFP needs approximately $450 million over the next six months to support its operations in Gaza and the occupied West Bank. However, the agency has received only about half its usual funding for the Palestinian territories in 2026.

The funding crisis follows wider reductions in contributions to United Nations agencies and international aid programmes, including cuts implemented after US President Donald Trump returned to office.

In September, the WFP also halved the number of people receiving assistance in the West Bank, reducing its caseload from 400,000 to 200,000.

Winter Could Deepen Gaza’s Crisis

Although food security conditions have improved moderately, the WFP warned that humanitarian needs could rise again as winter approaches.

The agency said restrictions on goods entering Gaza continue to complicate relief efforts, while continuing insecurity and displacement leave families vulnerable.

“Now is not the time in the history of Palestine and Gaza to turn away from what is happening in Gaza,” Hughes said, urging continued international support.

The planned cuts threaten to leave hundreds of thousands of Palestinians without regular assistance at a time when humanitarian needs remain acute and many families continue to struggle to secure basic necessities.