UN food agency halts north Gaza deliveries amid gunfire, looting: ‘Unprecedented levels of desperation’

The UN’s food agency says it has paused deliveries of aid to north Gaza after convoys of trucks faced gunfire and looting.

The World Food Programme (WFP) resumed deliveries on Sunday after a three-week suspension but its convoy “faced complete chaos and violence due to the collapse of civil order” and its teams reported witnessing “unprecedented levels of desperation,” it says.

“WFP is pausing the delivery of lifesaving food assistance to Northern Gaza until safe conditions are in place for our staff and the people we are trying to reach,” the organization says.

“Our decision to pause deliveries to the north has not been taken lightly. The safety and security to deliver critical food aid – and for the people receiving it – must be ensured,” it says.

The agency says that on Sunday, a convoy “was surrounded by crowds of hungry people,” and the teams had to fend off crowds trying to climb on the trucks, as well as gunfire when they entered Gaza City.

The next day, a convoy “faced complete chaos and violence due to the collapse of civil order,” the agency says.