Cindy McCain, director of the World Food Programme, has warned that northern Gaza is suffering from “full-blown famine” spreading rapidly throughout the territory after nearly seven months of war, as negotiators meet in Cairo hoping to agree a ceasefire in the conflict in the Strip. .

These statements highlighted the scale of the unfolding humanitarian catastrophe.

“Whenever there are conflicts like this, and emotions run high, and things happen in war, famine happens,” Cindy McCain told NBC's Meet the Press Sunday.

"What I can explain to you is - there is a famine - a complete famine - in the north, and it is moving south," she added. While McCain's comments do not constitute an official declaration of famine, she said they were based on what World Food Program staff saw on the ground.

“It's terrifying,” she said of the situation in Gaza. “It's very hard to look at and very hard to hear.”

McCain said that the World Food Program is demanding a ceasefire and "unrestricted access" to Gaza because delivering aid to the Strip is extremely difficult.

Israel has faced increasing pressure in recent weeks to allow aid into Gaza after its military raids led to the deaths of seven workers at World Central Kitchen, a charitable organization based in Washington, DC.

Human rights agencies have long warned of the worsening humanitarian crisis in Gaza under the Israeli military offensive, which began in response to the October 7 attacks led by Hamas. More than 34,600 Palestinians were killed in Israeli attacks, most of them children and women, as of May 1, according to the Gaza Ministry of Health.

Over the course of the war, more than 1.9 million Palestinians have been forcibly displaced, according to the United Nations, with many taking refuge in cramped camps that do not provide adequate access to sanitation or food. The entire population of more than 2.2 million now faces the threat of famine, and at least 30 children have died from malnutrition and dehydration in Gaza, according to the Ministry of Health.

Concerns are also growing about the expected Israeli military operation in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip, which has led to renewed calls for a ceasefire.

As negotiations continued in Cairo, the head of the Hamas political bureau, Ismail Haniyeh, issued a statement on Sunday in which he said, “Hamas remains keen to reach a comprehensive and coherent agreement that ends the aggression, guarantees the withdrawal of the [Israeli army from Gaza], and achieves a prisoner exchange deal.” seriousness".

Haniyeh said that the delegation carried “positive and flexible positions” aimed at stopping “the aggression against our people, which is a basic and logical position that lays the foundation for a more stable future.” A Hamas delegation arrived in Egypt on Saturday for talks on a possible ceasefire and hostage agreement.