Hospital officials say Palestinians sheltering in tents or seeking scarce food aid were among at least 25 people killed by Israeli strikes in Gaza.

The Integrated Food Security Phase Classification, or IPC, said famine is happening in Gaza City, home to hundreds of thousands of Palestinians.

Hospital officials in Gaza say Israeli strikes and gunfire have killed at least 25 Palestinians sheltering in tents or seeking scarce food aid.

U.N. Humanitarian Chief Tom Fletcher said that the famine that has struck part of Gaza was preventable, blaming the "systematic obstruction" of aid by Israel and demanding that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu let supplies in on a massive scale.

Gaza City residents were seen coming and going from the Zikim area of the city on Saturday to collect aid a day after the world's leading authority on food crises said the Gaza Strip's largest city was gripped by famine.

US State Department largely dismisses UN report, says it's 'looking into credible reports that the IPC recently changed its definition for what constitutes a famine'

Israel’s defense minister warned on Friday that Gaza City could be destroyed unless Hamas accepts Israel’s terms, as the country prepares for an expanded offensive in the area

The drums of war are pounding on the doorstep of Gaza City. Residents of the largest city in northern Gaza, packed with locals and refugees, fear the hours are ticking down before a looming Israeli offensive.