The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) warned on Thursday that more than 70,000 children in the Gaza Strip face severe levels of malnutrition, amid a rapidly deteriorating humanitarian situation and the ongoing Israeli blockade and aggression.

The program explained in a statement that food aid reaching the Strip is critically insufficient in terms of quantity and nutritional diversity, exacerbating the risk of health deterioration, especially among children and infants, who are the most vulnerable and affected by the disruption of basic supplies.

The statement indicated that any further escalation in military operations could lead to a near-total halt to relief operations, warning of the repercussions for more than two million Palestinians, most of whom rely on aid for their survival.

The WFP called for urgent international efforts to ensure regular and safe access for humanitarian aid, warning that the Strip is approaching a wider humanitarian catastrophe if restrictions on the flow of aid and the lack of an effective international response continue.