WFP Cuts Aid to 500,000 Palestinians in Gaza Over Funding Shortfall

The United Nations World Food Programme announced it is halting monthly assistance to roughly 500,000 Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, The Jerusalem Post and Pakistani newspaper Dawn reported. Following the cutbacks, the number of aid recipients will drop from 1.6 million to approximately 1.1 million people.

According to the reports, the reductions stem from a severe funding shortfall rather than humanitarian access constraints in the area. In addition to reducing the beneficiary count, the agency noted it is scaling back the volume of food and cash assistance provided to families who remain on the rolls, even as an estimated 1.4 million residents in the territory continue to suffer acute food insecurity.