The assessment applies to Gaza City and its surroundings, writes the UN-backed body that monitors food availability in the world. It is the first time that famine conditions have been confirmed not only in Gaza, but in the Middle East as a whole, writes the news agency AFP.
IPC describes that the "catastrophic conditions" are expected to spread to Dayr al-Balah and Khan Yunis by the end of September.
The highest level has only been found a handful of times in recent decades and means this time that 641,000 people are facing "catastrophic conditions characterized by famine, poverty and death", according to IPC.
An additional million people are in the second highest level of famine.
Blocked emergency aid
IPC's criteria for confirming famine are that 20 percent of households suffer from extreme food shortages (starvation), at least 30 percent of all children between 6 months and 5 years suffer from acute malnutrition, and at least 2 people per 10,000 inhabitants, or 5 children under 5 years, die every day as a result of starvation or a combination of starvation and disease. All three criteria must be met for the level to be considered reached.
The famine disaster in Gaza occurs after Israel, during the 22-month-long war, has at times blocked all forms of emergency aid from reaching the Gaza Strip. Even though some supplies are now being let in, it is described by the UN as being far from enough to compensate for the long-term shortages.
"Even if further deaths can and should be prevented through immediate action, it is clear that these actions will in practice be a delayed reaction, since many will already have died by then", writes the expert group in a report on the famine levels.
UN chief: "A war crime"
From heavy UN weights comes condemnation.
It is a war crime to use famine as a method of warfare, says human rights chief Volker Türk, according to AFP.
We cannot allow this situation to continue unpunished, says Secretary-General António Guterres, and calls for an immediate ceasefire, immediate release of hostages and "full humanitarian access without restrictions".
Even though the assessment now applies to the area around Gaza City, the conditions north of the province are estimated to be just as serious or even worse, but IPC does not have enough data to confirm famine there.
Israel: Lies from Hamas
Areas that have been largely emptied of people, such as Rafah in southern Gaza, have not been analyzed either.
The Israeli Foreign Ministry dismisses the report in its entirety and claims that it is based on "lies from Hamas", reports AFP.
