One in five people in the Gaza Strip are facing starvation as the entire territory edges closer to famine, a new United Nations-backed report warns, after nearly three months of Israel’s blockade of critically needed humanitarian aid.

Israel’s government has publicly dismissed warnings of extreme food shortages after it blocked aid deliveries, but an internal analysis concluded that a crisis looms if food supplies are not restored.

Israel is expanding the "buffer zone" in Gaza, which now accounts for approximately 35% of the enclave's total area of 360 square kilometers, an Israeli broadcaster said in its report on Wednesday.