By Michelle Nichols and Olivia Le Poidevin

UNITED NATIONS/GENEVA (Reuters) -Famine is "playing out" in the Gaza Strip, a global hunger monitor said in an alert issued on Tuesday as international criticism of Israel intensifies over rapidly worsening conditions in the Palestinian enclave.

"The worst-case scenario of Famine is currently playing out in the Gaza Strip," said the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) alert. "Mounting evidence shows that widespread starvation, malnutrition, and disease are driving a rise in hunger-related deaths."

The IPC alert does not formally classify Gaza as being in famine. Such a classification can only be made through an analysis, which the IPC said it would now conduct "without delay."

The IPC is a global initiative that partners with 21 aid groups, international organizations,and U.N. agencies, and assesses the extent of hunger suffered by a population.

War has raged in Gaza between Israel and Palestinian militants Hamas for the past 22 months. Facing global condemnation over the humanitarian crisis, Israel said on Sunday it would halt military operations for 10 hours a day in parts of the Palestinian enclave and allow new aid corridors.

For an area to be classified as in famine, at least 20% of people must be suffering extreme food shortages, with one in three children acutely........

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