Cindy McCain Describes Gaza Conditions as “Devastation,” Urges Expanded Aid

August 31, 2025 (CNN) - World Food Programme Executive Director Cindy McCain returned from Gaza today, painting a stark picture of the humanitarian crisis and pressing for an urgent increase in food deliveries to the enclave.

In an exclusive interview with CNN, McCain recounted her recent visits to nutrition clinics and displacement sites across Gaza, describing widespread malnutrition and dire shortages of staples as “devastation.” She emphasized that more than half a million Gazans face catastrophic hunger and warned that famine is imminent without a significant surge in aid and guaranteed safe corridors for relief convoys.

McCain highlighted that current aid delivery-approximately 100 trucks per day-falls far short of the 600 daily convoys during the recent cease-fire and underscored the necessity of unfettered access to all areas of Gaza. “We can feed these families if we’re allowed to operate at scale and reach those most in need,” she said, urging international partners to pressure all parties to maintain humanitarian pauses and secure routes for World Food Programme shipments.

Reflecting on her late husband Senator John McCain’s legacy of public service, McCain called on global leaders to unite behind the principle of protecting civilians in conflict zones. “He believed in serving a cause greater than oneself,” she noted. “Today, that cause is ensuring no family in Gaza is left to starve.”