The “worst-case scenario of famine” is currently taking place in the Gaza Strip, according to an alert issued by the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC), a United Nations-backed initiative.

The "worst-case scenario of famine is currently playing out" in the Gaza Strip, UN-backed global food security experts warn.

Famine conditions in Gaza are worsening as time runs out to mount a full-scale humanitarian response, United Nations agencies warned, amid growing international outcry over the crisis.

France will air-drop aid into Gaza in coming days, a diplomatic source quoted by French news agency AFP said on Tuesday. The move comes as UN-backed experts warned the Israeli-blockaded Palestinian territory is slipping into famine.

Experts warned Tuesday that the territory of about 2 million Palestinians is on the brink of famine after Israeli restrictions and a breakdown of security have made it nearly impossible to safely deliver aid.

Israel’s army is expected to begin another 10-hour pause in military activity in parts of Gaza as aid agencies call on all border crossings to be opened.