Martin Griffiths, the UN’s undersecretary-general for humanitarian affairs, says all predictions about the catastrophic consequences of an Israeli ground invasion of Rafah are “coming true”.

In a post on X, Griffiths — who has long warned of the fallout should Rafah’s population of displaced people face a military onslaught — said there is “almost no food left and humanitarian efforts are stuck”.

“The world has lost its way and needs to return to the norms we created,” he said.

In an interview with the Reuters news agency, Griffiths said famine in Gaza was an “immediate, clear and present danger”.

“Facts on the ground tell us we don’t need to be scientists to see the consequence of the removal of food,” he said.