Since the United States and the Israeli-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) started operations at the end of May, more than 1,000 Palestinians have been killed, according to the UN.
1,054 people were killed in Gaza as of July 21 while getting food, according to the report; According to UN human rights office spokesman Thameen Al-Kheetan, 288 of the victims were killed close to UN and other humanitarian organization aid convoys, and 766 of them were killed close to GHF sites.
At least 43 Palestinians were killed by Israeli forces alone on Tuesday, according to Israeli forces, including 10 aid-seekers, in attacks since dawn across Gaza the day after tanks have for the first time entered Deir el-Balah city’s southern and eastern regions.
At least 15 people, including four children, have died in Gaza from starvation and malnutrition within 24 hours, according to the enclave’s Ministry of Health on Tuesday, according to the enclave’s Ministry of Health. The humanitarian blockade and genocidal war against Gaza and its partial lifting in March, continue to grip the Palestinian territory.
Our Al Jazeera Arabic colleagues claimed that one of the children was a 40-day-old baby in the north and that the other was a child from Khan Younis in southern Gaza. The team reported that 21 children have died from malnutrition and starvation in the past three days.
Over the past 72 hours, these deaths have been reported at hospitals in Gaza, including al-Shifa in Gaza City, Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Deir el-Balah, and Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis, according to Mohammed Abu Salmiya, head of the largest hospital in the country.
Since Israel launched its war on the Gaza Strip following the Hamas-led attacks on southern Israel on October 7, 2023, there have been 101 hunger-related deaths in the area, including 80 children.
More than one million children in Gaza are going hungry, according to UNRWA, the UN agency for Palestinian refugees.
The humanitarian director of Save the Children, Rachel Cummings, described the situation in Gaza as “catastrophic.”
She claimed that there haven’t been enough food supplies in Gaza for a very long time when she spoke to Deir el-Balah.
According to Cummings, the markets are empty, and the water sanitation system is insufficient to meet the 2 million people who are “already on the verge of famine.”
She claimed that she has witnessed “hungry people, children carrying empty bowls, looking for food and water in Deir el-Balah”.
In our clinics and nutrition centers, there are more cases of malnourished children. Additionally, we are seeing an increase in the number of breastfeeding and pregnant women, who are also malnourished, she continued, adding, “Everyone in Gaza is now hungry, and even my team is thin, and they are unable to get food in the market. ”
‘Man-made’ famine
The UN special rapporteur on the right to food, Michael Fakhri, has described Gaza’s starvation as a “man-made” famine.
According to Fakhri, “Israel’s starvation campaign is at its most horrifying stage right now in Gaza.”
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former defense minister Yoav Gallant were both arrested in November by the International Criminal Court for “crimes against humanity and war crimes” committed during the Gaza war, claims that are partly related to the use of starvation, according to the UN rapporteur.
According to him, arrest warrants “create a legal obligation: nations must act to stop starvation.” ”
According to UNRWA chief Philippe Lazzarini, doctors, nurses, and other healthcare professionals in Gaza are also suffering from hunger and exhaustion as a result of Israel’s starvation tactics.
I am currently witnessing severe starvation and hunger in both my coworkers and my patients. Deirdre Nunan, a Canadian orthopaedic surgeon, spoke from Nasser Hospital, where she is currently volunteering, and I see people who struggle to get through a day of work because they lack the energy to carry out their normal responsibilities.
She continued, noting that she had witnessed people who had suffered severe multisystem burns and injuries as a result of Israeli air raids and attacks on their tents who were malnourished and lacked the “extra calories and protein” they would ordinarily require to recover from and survive from.
The AFP journalists’ union has warned that Gaza’s journalists are vulnerable to starvation and hunger.
On July 19, one of its ten freelancers wrote in a message on social media that they lacked the desire to work for the media. I can’t work because my body is so thin. ”
The Strip’s workforce, according to the AFP news agency, lacks the physical capacity to carry out their duties, and the situation is getting worse. Their heartbreaking requests for assistance are now being made daily, the statement read.
The union claimed that despite receiving a monthly salary, there is neither food nor anything to buy. We run the risk of learning about their passing at any time, and we cannot bear to see this.
Source: Aljazeera
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