World Food Programme Halves Food Aid in West Bank

The World Food Programme is reducing its food assistance in the West Bank by half starting in September 2026, cutting the number of recipients from 400,000 to 200,000. The agency attributes the decision to severe funding shortages and donor fatigue, noting that contributions from major Western donors, including the United States, have fallen sharply as those nations prioritize domestic and defense spending.

This reduction comes as food insecurity in the West Bank has more than doubled since 2023, rising from 11% to over 25%. The agency identifies economic deterioration, settler violence, Israeli military operations, and movement restrictions as primary drivers of the crisis, particularly in rural areas and southern villages like Hebron. The WFP urgently requires an additional $386 million to sustain operations across the West Bank and Gaza over the next six months.

In the Gaza Strip, the WFP already reduced cash assistance by 40% for 375,000 people in July and warns that 90% of the population could face acute food insecurity by year-end without new funding. Simultaneously, the World Health Organization reports a deteriorating public health crisis in Gaza, where microbiological water contamination has nearly tripled since January. This has led to a surge in acute watery diarrhoea cases, which rose from 30,000 in March to over 58,000 in August. Additionally, the WHO reports that no new prosthetic limbs have entered the territory since May 2024, leaving the vast majority of amputees without care.