ONE-THIRD OF GAZA POPULATION HAS NOT EATEN FOR SEVERAL DAYS AMID ISRAELI SIEGE: WFP

Tue 22 July 2025:

One-third of Gaza’s population has not eaten for several days due to the ongoing Israeli blockade on the Palestinian enclave, the World Food Program (WFP) said.

“The hunger crisis in Gaza has reached new and astonishing levels of desperation, with a third of the population not eating for multiple days in a row,” Ross Smith, WFP director of emergency preparedness and response, said in a statement.

According to WFP estimates, a quarter of the population in Gaza is facing famine-like conditions, as 100,000 women and children are suffering from acute malnutrition.

Since March 2, Israel has sealed all crossings into Gaza, halting the entry of food, medicine, and humanitarian aid.

Gaza’s Health Ministry said Israel’s deliberate starvation policy has led to the deaths of 86 Palestinians, including 76 children, since October 2023 due to hunger and malnutrition.

__________________________________________________________________________

https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029VaAtNxX8fewmiFmN7N22

__________________________________________________________________________

‘Have mercy on our children!’

The UN agency for Palestinian refugees, UNRWA, says more than one million children in Gaza are going hungry as Israel has only allowed a trickle of food and humanitarian aid to enter the Strip since March.

“We hope that formula and diapers for children will be allowed in, and that crossings will open so food can come in,” the mother of a malnourished baby told Al Jazeera. “As mothers, we watch our children suffer, and it hurts us.”

Charity kitchens that had been a lifeline for hundreds of thousands of displaced Palestinians have shut, leaving people to scrape up bits of leftover pulses.

“Is this even edible?! Is this edible?!” a Palestinian woman said, holding up a bag containing a few pulses. “I have to feed my children! Is this edible?! People, have mercy on us! Have mercy on our children!”

Ahmed Abed, a displaced man, told Al Jazeera that he despairs over what to tell his hungry children.

“There is nothing, no food, no water. We don’t know how to deal with the children. What do we tell them when they ask for food?”

Most patients admitted to hospitals in Gaza due to malnutrition

Israel’s blockade of Gaza has plunged the Strip into a severe malnutrition crisis, with children particularly vulnerable to starvation.

Umm Musab al Dibs cannot contain her emotion as she sits at the bedside of her severely malnourished 14-year-son in al-Shifa Hospital, Gaza City. He now weighs less than 10kg (22 pounds).

“He used to weigh 40kg and was the pillar of strength in our family, supporting me and his sisters,” she told Al Jazeera.

Al-Shifa – the largest hospital in the Gaza Strip – has seen a sharp increase in malnutrition cases lately, but it is struggling to treat patients because of the severe shortage of medical supplies.

“Most patients admitted to the hospital recently are not suffering from war injuries but from severe malnutrition,” Moataz Harar, head of the emergency department at the hospital, told Al Jazeera.

“Even some of our medical workers have fainted from a lack of food. The situation is grave, but it’s not new. It’s just that the number is rising rapidly.”

Hussam, a severely malnourished infant, was brought to al-Shifa by his mother, who was desperate for help. Doctors described his condition as dire.

“Because of the current situation, there is no formula, no food, nothing to drink. This is famine. I cannot meet my child’s needs,” she said.

“We were admitted on Friday, and since then, my son has been surviving on IV fluids. He’s unable to walk.”

SOURCE: INDEPENDENT PRESS AND NEWS AGENCIES

__________________________________________________________________________

FOLLOW INDEPENDENT PRESS:

WhatsApp CHANNEL
https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029VaAtNxX8fewmiFmN7N22