MICHEL MARTIN, HOST:
The U.N. says it has no more food in Gaza. Its warehouses are now empty, and it cannot supply charity kitchens that had been feeding a million people - half of Gaza's population. Israel has blocked food and aid for two months. Dozens of countries are arguing at The Hague today that the blockade violates international law. NPR's Anas Baba in Gaza City and Aya Batrawy in Dubai report on the desperate search for food.
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UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #1: (Speaking Arabic).
UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #2: (Speaking Arabic).
AYA BATRAWY, BYLINE: Desperate crowds of children and adults push and shove at a charity kitchen in Gaza City. They hold out metal pots and empty food cans for scoops of whatever's been cooked. These days, it's mostly lentils. Majeda al-Sakkani, a 50-year-old mother, showed up hoping for some rice to feed her eight children.
MAJEDA AL-SAKKANI: (Through interpreter) I swear to God, we sleep hungry. I'm a witness to this. We go hungry. We don't have dinner or breakfast - just this meal for lunch, and the portion isn't even enough.
BATRAWY: The U.N. World Food Programme has been warning for weeks supplies in Gaza are running out. A month ago, its 25 bakeries in Gaza shut down because there was no more flour or cooking gas under Israel's blockade.
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BATRAWY: In this video, the U.N. food agency shows the last boxes of food aid being loaded onto trucks. The World Food Programme's Antoine Renard says supplies in Gaza are fully depleted.
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ANTOINE RENARD: Our remaining stocks were directed to a hot meal kitchen, which are continuing to serve people in need. But these, too, are expected to run out by the end of the month.
BATRAWY: That means food kitchens that rely on the World Food Programme will shut down within days. But there's enough food to feed a million people for months just waiting outside Gaza. Israel is blocking it from coming in. Israeli hardliners say it's how to win the war against Hamas and free hostages held in Gaza on Israel's terms.
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MOSHE SAADA: (Speaking Hebrew).
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: (Speaking Hebrew).
SAADA: (Speaking Hebrew).
BATRAWY: Israeli lawmaker Moshe Saada of the prime minister's Likud Party told Israel's Channel 14 News last week, "I do want to starve the Gazans. Yes, absolutely. It is our duty." Hamas condemns the blockade. Rights groups and aid organizations say Israel's blockade amounts to collective punishment and is illegal under international law. Back at the food kitchen, waiting in a crowd of hundreds, al-Sakkani says there will be famine when these kitchens close.
AL-SAKKANI: (Speaking Arabic).
BATRAWY: "We only have God in this food kitchen," she says. She only has prayers when this lifeline for her and her eight kids ends within days. There are some markets selling food, but there's no dairy, eggs or poultry - just canned corned beef, fermented pickles and locally grown vegetables. Most people can't afford to buy even these.
Aya Batrawy, NPR News, Dubai, with Anas Baba in Gaza City. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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