Gaza is grappling with an escalating starvation crisis, with at least 111 Palestinians, including 80 children, dead from hunger as Israel’s nearly five-month blockade strangles food, water, and fuel supplies.
The enclave’s Health Ministry reported 10 deaths from starvation in the past 24 hours alone, signaling a dire escalation.
Mara Bernasconi, a regional manager for Humanity & Inclusion UK, described Gaza as at “peak level of starvation,” where people are “dropping dead” daily.
The blockade’s impact is relentless, with humanitarian workers themselves facing hunger and dehydration while struggling to aid others.
This man-made crisis, fueled by Israel’s restrictions, has pushed Gaza to the brink, with no immediate relief in sight.
Malnutrition is devastating Gaza’s most vulnerable, particularly children and pregnant women.
At least 80 children have died from malnutrition since Israel’s war began, with four deaths reported in a single day.
The Health Ministry notes that 60,000 pregnant women suffer from malnutrition, threatening unborn babies and preventing mothers from breastfeeding due to their own lack of food.
A grieving uncle told Reuters his infant nephew died because the family could not access baby formula, a direct consequence of Israel’s blockade.
The crisis has left families unable to meet basic nutritional needs, with long-term consequences like stunted growth and death looming over Gaza’s youth.
Israel’s blockade and aid distribution tactics have drawn fierce condemnation for exacerbating Gaza’s famine.
Israeli analyst Menachem Klein labeled Israeli society as “genocidal,” accusing the government of dehumanizing Palestinians and urging sanctions to halt its starvation policies.
Church leaders, including Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, called the situation “morally unacceptable” after witnessing men queuing for hours for meager meals, describing it as a humiliating sentence of deprivation.
A former US security guard with the GHF aid group exposed abusive tactics, including pepper-spraying unarmed Palestinians and shooting at their feet to disperse them.
These accounts paint a grim picture of Israel’s role in perpetuating a crisis that Hamas has called a “crime of starvation,” urging global protests to break the siege.