Gaza aid falls 37%, funding at 10%

1/ Aid deliveries into Gaza dropped 37% in recent months, with international funding covering just 10% of needs, according to UN data compiled by Euronews. Trucks entering daily fell from an average of 500 before October 2023 to under 100 by early May 2026, amid Israeli inspections at Kerem Shalom and other crossings. 2/ Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) reported acute malnutrition rates in northern Gaza hitting 30% among children under 5—triple emergency thresholds—based on screenings in April 2026. Pregnant women showed 25% anemia rates, with newborns averaging 2.5kg at birth, down from 3.2kg pre-war. MSF blamed new Israeli policies for blocking medical evacuations and supplies. 3/ Israel's Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT) implemented stricter dual-use inspections in March 2026, halting items like chlorine tablets and oxygen concentrators deemed risky. A New Yorker analysis found 80% of flagged aid was nutritional or medical, not military-related. COGAT approved 92% of requests overall but rejected northern Gaza entries entirely for two weeks in April. 4/ Funding dried up after the U.S. paused $320 million in UNRWA support in January 2026, citing alleged staff involvement in attacks—claims UNRWA investigated, firing 12 employees. Only $650 million of a required $6.5 billion Gaza appeal was pledged by May 15, per OCHA. European donors filled 40% of the gap, but Gulf states cut contributions amid political shifts. 5/ On May 15, 2026—78th anniversary of the Nakba—thousands of Palestinians marched from Rafah to the Gaza fence, chanting against displacement. Israeli forces fired warning shots, injuring 47, Gaza Health Ministry said. Protests highlighted 1.9 million displaced (90% of population), with 70% of farmland unusable per FAO satellite data. 6/ MSF's Dr. Chris Szek, in a Khan Younis clinic, treated 150 malnourished infants weekly in May, up from 20 pre-policy change. "Babies arrive with wasting so severe we can't reverse it," Szek told The New Yorker. Infant mortality hit 15% in surveyed northern camps, per MSF records. 7/ UNRWA warehouses in central Gaza hold 1,200 tons of flour but can't distribute north due to access denials, OCHA reported May 14. Water production fell 70% since March, risking cholera outbreaks—12 cases confirmed by WHO. Aid groups airlifted 50 tons via Jordan but called it "a drop in the ocean." 8/ Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu defended restrictions May 10, saying they prevent "Hamas rearmament" after seizing 2 tons of explosives hidden in aid trucks. Critics, including UN's Martin Griffiths, called it collective punishment, noting no aid reaches Hamas per inspections. 9/ Next: UN Security Council meets May 20 on a U.S.-backed resolution for 300 daily trucks. Hamas offered supervised distributions; Israel demands demilitarization first. OCHA projects famine by July without 600 trucks/day.