The United Nations food agency has warned that the dire humanitarian crisis in Gaza could escalate into famine and has appealed for more secure and functional entry points into the war-torn area to enable much-needed aid to flow in.

The renewed alarm came just a day after the Israeli parliament approved new legislation banning the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNWRA), and two weeks after the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification projected that 1.95 million people in Gaza (91 percent of the population) would face acute food insecurity.

Amnesty International has criticized the Knesset’s action as “criminalization of humanitarian aid”.

READ MORE: UN: 25% of Gaza's people one step away from famine

Restrictions on humanitarian aid coming into Gaza are severe. In October, only 5,000 metric tons of food were delivered into Gaza, amounting to just 20 percent  of basic food assistance for the 1.1 million people who depend on the UN World Food Programme’s (WFP) lifesaving support.

The WFP said it currently has approximately 94,000 metric tons of food – enough to feed 1 million people for four months – ready to go to Gaza, with 46,596 metric tons positioned in Ashdod port, Egypt and Jordan. It stands ready to bring the urgently needed supplies but “need more border crossing points to be open and for them to be secure”.

The crossing points in question include Kissufim, which would support operations south of Gaza with direct access to Deir el-Balah; Karni Crossing, which has yet to be opened as a depot or platform to enable dispatches to the north and south, particularly to serve Gaza City effectively.

Zikim or Erez are also included as these crossing points are alternating, with only one crossing opening at a time. Both crossings should be open simultaneously to double the potential throughput, the WFP said, while Kerem Shalom or Gate 96 route, though currently operational as a crossing point or platform to support operations in the south and north, requires critical improvements to the security environment to permit safe passage of aid.  

The WFP also reiterated that the UNRWA “is indispensable” in providing lifesaving aid and social services in Gaza, in responding to the Knesset’s move.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, who is banned in Israel, sent a letter to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, according to Stephane Dujarric, spokesperson for the UN chief.

Guterres outlined in the letter "the issues of international law that have been raised” by the new Israeli legislation.

The UN also stressed that the Israeli government will have to meet the needs of Palestinian refugees under international law if it cuts ties with UNRWA.

Separately, UNRWA commissioner-general Philippe Lazzarini has written to the president of the UN General Assembly calling for “decisive intervention” to help the UNRWA carry out its mandate in the occupied Palestinian territory, Al Jazeera reported.

Lazzarini noted that the rules-based international order “is crumbling in a repetition of the horrors that led to the establishment of the United Nations, and in violation of commitments to prevent their recurrence”, adding that the attacks on UNRWA “are an integral part of this disintegration”.

Abdalfatah Asqool, a former international law lecturer at the University of Palestine, told China Daily that it is obvious that Israel is “using hunger as a weapon against civilians in the Gaza Strip” since October last year by banning humanitarian aid entering Gaza Strip, which “clearly violates the rules of international humanitarian law”.

He also blamed the international community for its silence, which he said had enabled Israel to press on and attack UN agencies, especially UNRWA.

“Doubtlessly this Israeli law is violating the rules of international humanitarian law. As the occupation authority, during the armed conflict, (it) is obliged to reduce civilian suffering and facilitate the mission of humanitarian agencies, especially the UN agencies,” said Asqool.

“Even if the Israelis claim that they will handle the humanitarian relief, this doesn’t legitimize their law. And they have no right to do so,” he added.

In September, the UN General Assembly passed a historic resolution demanding that Israel bring to an end its unlawful presence in the Occupied Palestinian Territory within 12 months.

READ MORE: Famine warnings: Israel urged to allow food delivery to Gaza

Meanwhile, Jordan on Oct 29 called for an emergency meeting of the Arab League to discuss a unified Arab response to the Israeli ban on UNRWA, the Jordan Times ported.

On the same day, Norway’s government also said it would clarify with the UN about Israel’s obligations under international law.

“‘With this initiative, Norway aims to affirm that no country, including Israel, is exempt from its international legal obligations. We observe similar trends in other countries, where leaders are attempting to undermine international humanitarian law and delivery of assistance in situations of crisis and conflict. This development must be stopped,” said Norwegian Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide.

Contact the writer at jan@chinadailyapac.com