Gaza is suffering man-made mass starvation caused by the blockade of aid into the territory, the head of the World Health Organization has said, as more than 100 agencies urged Israel to let supplies in to alleviate the crisis.

“I don’t know what you would call it other than mass starvation, and it’s man-made, and that’s very clear,” Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told a virtual press conference from Geneva. “This is because of [the] blockade.”

A letter signed by 109 agencies including Doctors Without Borders, Oxfam International and Amnesty International says the Israeli government is blocking humanitarian organisations from effectively distributing life-saving aid.

“Just outside Gaza, in warehouses – and even within Gaza itself – tonnes of food, clean water, medical supplies, shelter items and fuel sit untouched with humanitarian organisations blocked from accessing or delivering them,” the agencies wrote. “The government of Israel’s restrictions, delays, and fragmentation under its total siege have created chaos, starvation, and death.”