McCain, who made this statement on Friday, is the most prominent international figure to use the term "famine" in relation to the situation in Gaza.

She urged for a ceasefire and increased aid flow through land and sea routes to address the worsening humanitarian crisis in Gaza, which is home to over 2.3 million people.

Gaza is on the brink of famine, according to international monitors, with northern Gaza likely to experience famine this month.

Israel, which controls Gaza's entrance, is beginning to allow in more food and humanitarian aid through land crossings.

The United States is preparing to open a new US-led sea route to bring in more food and aid, including treatment for starving children, by early or mid-May. The American military is building a floating pier to receive the shipments, and the delivery of aid will be gradual as aid groups test distribution and security arrangements.

There was no immediate comment from Israel regarding the new sea route.

Anonymous official comments on the preparations for the Biden administration's $320 million Gaza pier project, with USAID coordinating on-the-ground security and distribution.

USAID Administrator Samantha Power announced a $200 million investment to increase production of emergency nutritional paste for starving children under 5 at a factory in Georgia.

The paste, produced at Mana nonprofit in Fitzgerald, is used in clinical settings and made from ground peanuts, powdered milk, sugar, and oil.

UN official, Penny A.

Power, emphasized the urgency and importance of providing aid to the half a million people in need in Gaza, as the current relief efforts only serve a fraction of the population.

The US and other countries have been pressuring Israeli officials to reopen border crossings for humanitarian aid.

However, the aid coming through the sea route will not be sufficient to prevent famine.

Aid organizations, including USAID, stress the importance of increasing aid through border crossings.

Children under five are at the highest risk of death due to hunger during wars, droughts, or other disasters.

Hospital officials in northern Gaza reported the first deaths from hunger in early March, most of whom were children.

The UN has called for 400 metric tons of nutritional paste to address the severe hunger crisis in Gaza.

USAID aims to save millions of lives by providing a quarter of the funding for a treatment produced at a Georgia factory.

The treatment is part of a pier project in Gaza, coordinated with the World Food Program and other partners.

President Biden announced the project in response to the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, while providing military support for Israel.

The pier construction has been temporarily paused due to unsafe conditions, and the partially built pier and military vessels have gone to Israel's Port of Ashdod for continuation.

A US official has announced that the installation of a new aid delivery system in the high seas to North Gaza will be delayed due to bad weather and potential security issues.

The official spoke anonymously and warned that the delay could last longer if the weather continues to be unfavorable, requiring military personnel and divers to work in the water.

This week's aid delivery through a land corridor into North Gaza was disrupted when Israeli settlers blocked the convoy and later, Hamas militants took control of it.

The UN was able to reclaim the convoy, but the incident underscored the ongoing security challenges and dangers facing relief workers in the region.

The most urgent need in Gaza is nutritional treatment for starving children in the northern part of the Palestinian territory, where civilians have been cut off from aid supplies, bombarded by Israeli airstrikes, and forced to hide due to fighting.

The acute malnutrition rate among children under 5 in northern Gaza has rapidly increased from 1% to 30% since the war began.

This is the fastest such climb in recent history, surpassing even the crises in Somalia and South Sudan.

Kamal Adwan hospital, one of the few functioning medical facilities, is overwhelmed with thousands of malnourished children brought in by parents.

Aid officials estimate that many more starving children remain unreachable due to ongoing fighting and checkpoints.

To save these gravely malnourished children, there needs to be a significant increase in aid deliveries and a sustained reduction in fighting to allow aid workers to set up treatment centers and families to safely bring their children in for extended care.