T
he aim of this article is twofold. First, it provides an assessment of the
extraordinary deterioration in food security in the West Bank and Gaza Strip
(WBGS) since the outbreak of the second intifada (popular uprising) in 2000.
Second, it argues that food insecurity in the WBGS is mainly a result of lack of access
to food, both physical and economic. Lack of physical access refers to the severe
restrictions on the movement of people and goods imposed by the Israeli army, and
which take the form of closures, curfews, construction of a separation wall, and land
confiscation. Lack of economic access refers to the income deterioration due to high
unemployment and loss of business, which have been among the immediate
consequences of the restrictions on movements.