WFP warns of escalating hunger after aid trucks looted in southern Gaza

The World Food Programme (WFP) said 15 of its aid trucks were looted late on Thursday night in southern Gaza while delivering vital food supplies to WFP-supported bakeries.

"These trucks were transporting critical food supplies for hungry populations waiting anxiously for assistance," WFP said in a statement on Friday.

The agency urged Israeli authorities to allow "far greater volumes of food assistance into Gaza faster, more consistently, and transported along safer routes, as was done during the ceasefire".

WFP said current restrictions limiting food access points and operational bakeries are severely hampering its ability to distribute aid. 

The organisation reiterated that two million people in Gaza face extreme hunger and potential famine without immediate, large-scale humanitarian support.