[Correspondence] Rethinking current famine classification: insights from history

00:00 - 13 Feb 2026

The mass starvation in Gaza has called into question how famine is defined and measured. On Aug 22, 2025, the Famine Review Committee of the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) determined that the food situation in Gaza Governorate had reached phase 5: famine.1 This famine status followed repeated warnings from humanitarian organisations and medical professionals that starvation deaths and acute malnutrition among children were rising sharply due to Israeli Government policies and Israel Defense Forces' actions in the Gaza Strip, including denying humanitarian aid.