For true peace in Gaza, we must bring in food and end the famine | Opinion
President Donald Trump’s plan to end the Israel-Hamas war must be supported by food for the starving population in Gaza. The peace plan has already led to the release of the remaining living Israeli hostages in Gaza and brought about a ceasefire deal.
Trump’s peace plan also calls for full access for humanitarian agencies into Gaza. It’s crucial this plan be implemented, as Gaza is suffering in famine. The residents of Gaza cannot wait any longer. They need food now to survive extreme food shortages.
The United Nations World Food Program and other relief agencies have struggled to bring supplies into Gaza throughout the conflict. The fighting must end to allow to humanitarian aid deliveries, as people in Gaza are desperate for food, clean water and medicine.
Basic supplies that many of us take for granted are simply not available for Palestinians living in Gaza.
According to the World Food Program, “more than half a million people in Gaza are trapped in famine, marked by widespread starvation, destitution and preventable deaths.”
People in Gaza are going days without anything to eat, according to the UN. For small children, the malnutrition can stunt them for a lifetime — if they survive the hunger. Their only hope is the World Food Program and other relief agencies reaching them with food aid.
“People in Gaza have exhausted every possible means of survival. Hunger and malnutrition are claiming lives every day, and the destruction of cropland, livestock, greenhouses, fishery and food production systems has made the situation even more dire,” said United Nations Food And Agriculture Organization Director-General QU Dongyu.
Once the fighting stops, it is going to take a sustained relief effort to build up food supplies and production. Food will be the foundation for recovery and peace-building in Gaza. But it won’t happen overnight with the level of destruction.
That effort is going to require funding over the long haul. That is where the American people can make a big difference in support of the Gaza peace plan.
Anyone can donate to the relief agencies in Gaza, including programs such as the World Food Program, the United Nations Children’s Fund, Cooperative for Assistance and Relief Everywhere, Save the Children, Catholic Relief Services, Mercy Corps and Oxfam. You can also call and email your elected officials to increase funding for Food for Peace and other aid programs that fight world hunger.
We need to increase funding to help Gaza and other nations mired in hunger.
There are numerous hunger emergencies throughout the Middle East and around the globe. When hunger gets that severe because of wars, funding is supposed to go up for humanitarian aid. Tragically, however, funding for feeding the hungry has been cut this year. It’s important to reverse this dangerous trend and get food and humanitarian funding increasing during this time of massive need.
We all hope that this latest peace plan will succeed and end the war in Gaza. With hostages coming home and humanitarian aid moving into Gaza, there can, at last, be some hope.
William Lambers is an author who partnered with the UN World Food Program on the book “Ending World Hunger.” His writings have been published in outlets including The Washington Post, Newsweek and the History News Network.
This story was originally published October 17, 2025 at 6:00 AM with the headline "For true peace in Gaza, we must bring in food and end the famine | Opinion."