UNICEF Gaza findings ‘completely shatters’ starvation claims against Israel, State Dept says

The Trump State Department has reacted to a new report by UNICEF on malnutrition in Gaza by saying it "completely shatters" the allegations that Israel deliberately starved civilians in the Hamas-run enclave.

The outcry of criticism comes as a report used by the United Nations and quoted by much of the world's media projected starvation in Gaza well into June.

Following Hamas’ invasion of southern Israel on Oct.

7, 2023, that led to the deaths of some 1,200 people and the kidnapping of 251 Israeli and foreign nationals, the Jewish state invaded Gaza, which led to accusations of genocide and deliberate starvation tactics used against Gazans.

The UNICEF-led National Nutrition Cluster report from last month was able to reach 1,335 children under age 5 throughout 83% of the Gaza Strip to assess its risk of malnutrition.

Malnutrition rates were determined by weight-for-height Z-score (WHZ) and mid-upper-arm circumference (MUAC).

Using WHZ figures, rates ranged from 0.2% in Khan Younis and Rafah to 0.8% in Gaza City.

MUAC measurements found malnutrition rates ranging from 1.5% in Gaza City to 1.9% in Deir Al-Balah.

About 17% of the population could not be surveyed due to security and operational constraints.

TRUMP ADMINISTRATION PROBES UNRWA OVER ALLEGED EMPLOYMENT OF 1,500 TERRORISTS A State Department spokesperson told Fox News Digital that "UNICEF’s latest findings demonstrate another example that completely shatters the countless false allegations against Israel of deliberate starvation of civilians in Gaza.

There are U.N. entities, media outlets and NGOs that should retract and correct their politicized and baseless attacks on Israel – which has provided an unprecedented over 2 million tons of food into Gaza since the ceasefire." The rates of malnutrition UNICEF documented are on par with, or substantially lower than, those in some neighboring countries.

According to a post on X from the Israeli Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT), acute malnutrition figures in the region range from 1.3% in Gaza, Lebanon, and Turkey to 2.3% in Jordan, 3.3% in Egypt, 12.2% in Syria and 17.7% in Sudan.

UNICEF’s report has raised ire from onlookers who took issue with the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) statement that famine was "confirmed" in Gaza in August 2025.

The catalyst for the uproar was the IPC's warning from August 2025 that famine had reached Gaza Governorate.