More than 100 largely aid and rights groups on Wednesday called for governments to take action as hunger spreads in Gaza, including by demanding an immediate and permanent ceasefire and the lifting of all restrictions on the flow of humanitarian aid.

The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation is challenging the U.N.'s claims about restrictions on aid distribution in the Strip as the U.S.- and Israel-backed organization delivers over 85 million meals in under two months.

When Israel launched its controversial US-backed aid plan for Gaza, it aimed to stop Hamas’s alleged profiteering from the seizure and sale of humanitarian supplies.

The Norwegian Refugee Council, one of the largest independent aid organisations in Gaza, told Reuters on Tuesday its supplies were exhausted and some of its staff starving, and the group accused Israel of paralysing its work.

Gaza health officials say more than 100 Palestinians were killed Sunday by Israeli fire while trying to get food. The Red Cross's Steve Dorsey joins Morning Joe to explain how the enclave “has become a horror show,

U.N. officials, aid groups and experts have warned for months that Palestinians in Gaza are on the brink of famine without formally declaring one.

The joint statement comes as Palestinians face worsening starvation, daily massacres at "aid sites" and the ongoing blockade of humanitarian assistance.

As Israel faces mounting pressure to end the Gaza war, a hospital director says the Palestinian enclave is facing "alarming numbers of deaths" from starvation.