The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) said on Tuesday it was halving its assistance in the West Bank because of a funding shortfall, reducing the number of people receiving aid to 200,000.
"WFP is being forced to reduce the number of people we assist in the West Bank by half. This is happening as the food needs in the West Bank are more than double what they were two years ago," Shaun Hughes, the WFP’s country director said.
From today, around 200,000 people will no longer have access to vital assistance due to funding shortages, he added.
The agency representative pointed out that food insecurity was not always a major problem in the West Bank.
The WFP estimates that 900,000 people are food insecure in the West Bank, representing more than a quarter of the population, compared with 11% two years ago, Hughes said.
He noted that since the Gaza war began in October 2023, "intensified settler violence, prolonged and escalating Israeli military operations, severe movement restrictions, demolitions and widespread displacement in the West Bank have eroded Palestinian livelihoods and contributed to increased food insecurity."
Israel has occupied the West Bank, the seat of the Palestinian Authority, since 1967. More than 500,000 Israelis live in settlements there alongside three million Palestinians. The settlements are considered illegal under international law.
Until now, 400,000 of the most vulnerable people had benefited from WFP assistance.
The WFP’s latest quarterly food security analysis shows that three quarters of households in the West Bank experienced a significant decline in income, while one third of families are struggling to provide a nutritious diet.
"Families who were once thriving and earning a living from their land are now unable to afford enough food," Hughes said.
Working with its partners, the WFP provides families in the West Bank with cash and food assistance.
The funding shortfall is also threatening the agency's operations in Gaza, where it supports 1.5 million people, including one million who receive monthly food assistance, according to the WFP statement.
Humanitarian conditions in Gaza remain critical. The WFP said three-quarters of households in Gaza faced difficulties accessing markets in August.
Despite a ceasefire agreed by Israel and Hamas in October 2025, insecurity and movement restrictions continue to impede humanitarian operations and recovery efforts. U.N. agencies estimate that more than 2 million people have been displaced during the conflict, while large parts of Gaza's civilian infrastructure, including homes, hospitals, schools and water facilities, have been damaged or destroyed.
In July, the WFP cut by 40% the cash assistance it provides to 375,000 people in Gaza and warned that further reductions would become unavoidable without additional funding.
The agency says it requires $386 million over the next six months to assist nearly two million food-insecure people in Gaza and the West Bank.
Sources: CNA, AP, AFP
