Why aid isn’t reaching Gaza’s starving civilians despite trucks at the border

Why aid isn’t reaching Gaza’s starving civilians

Just 10 miles separate hundreds of aid trucks from over two million starving Palestinians trapped in Gaza—but for weeks, barely a trickle has gotten through. The reason isn’t a lack of supplies, say humanitarian workers. It’s a total breakdown in order: armed looters, starving civilians, and blocked humanitarian routes have created a crisis aid officials describe as the worst they’ve ever witnessed, the Wall Street Journal reported.

Lawlessness meets desperation

Antoine Renard, the World Food Program’s director for Palestine, described how gaunt-faced men swarmed his armoured convoy outside Deir al-Balah this week, rocking the vehicle as they fought for access to food. Nearly 95% of WFP’s aid trucks are looted before reaching their destination. Civilians, criminal gangs, and militant groups all intercept supplies—either to consume, hoard, or sell them on Gaza’s black market.

Israel and the UN trade blame

As famine sets in, the UN and Israel accuse each other of fuelling the crisis. Israel claims the UN has failed to distribute food that’s allowed in. The UN says Israel’s blockade, road destruction, fuel restrictions, and refusal to guarantee safe passage have made meaningful aid delivery nearly impossible. Since May 21, when Israel resumed partial aid entry, more than half of the UN’s movement requests have been denied, delayed, or impeded.

The system that once worked is broken

Before the war, the UN had over 200 distribution sites in Gaza, stocked from warehouses supplied via Israel, Jordan, and Egypt. Partner agencies delivered food to kitchens and pickup points near homes. That system has collapsed. Aid entering through Kerem Shalom and Zikim must now cross a militarized zone to reach civilians. Along the way, convoys are ambushed or overwhelmed by mobs. In the north, aid seekers sometimes walk miles into combat zones just to intercept trucks, risking death by gunfire.

New aid groups add to the confusion

Israel has backed a controversial new group, the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), to distribute aid from four checkpoints, mostly in the south. But reaching these sites means traveling—often on foot or by donkey—through dangerous territory. Crowds gathering at GHF points have repeatedly drawn Israeli fire when deemed threatening. Aid workers say neither the UN nor GHF has the capacity to meet demand. Both systems are overwhelmed.

Is aid being blocked intentionally?

Between May 21 and July 26, UN data shows that 53% of its coordination requests were either denied or obstructed by Israel. Aid groups question how Israel is now clearing more convoys even though battlefield conditions have worsened. This raises concerns that movement restrictions were previously excessive or politically motivated.

Famine now unfolding

The Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) warned this week that Gaza is entering the “worst-case scenario of famine.” Dozens have reportedly died of starvation. With Israel in control of 70% of the enclave and civilians pushed into dense coastal pockets, reaching them with food is nearly impossible. Aid workers insist that only one solution remains: flood Gaza with so much food that its value drops, and looting stops.

But for now, as hunger deepens and lawlessness grows, the humanitarian convoy system that once fed Gaza is broken—and civilians are paying the price.