GAZA CITY, Palestine – The Gaza Strip is facing a humanitarian crisis with a surge in child deaths due to the lack of food, rising malnutrition, and the spread of disease, according to multiple United Nations agencies. This crisis comes after nearly 20 weeks into the conflict between Israel and Palestine, further exacerbating the already dire situation for children in the region.
UNICEF’s deputy head of humanitarian action, Ted Chaiban, warned that the Gaza Strip is on the brink of a surge in preventable child deaths, compounding the existing high level of child mortality. At least 90% of children under 5 in Gaza are affected by one or more infectious diseases, highlighting the severity of the situation. This joint assessment by U.N. agencies for children, food, and health revealed that nearly 70% of young children had experienced diarrhea in the two weeks prior to the assessment, a significant increase compared to previous years.
The World Health Organization’s emergencies director, Mike Ryan, emphasized the deadly combination of hunger and disease, as children weakened by malnutrition are more susceptible to illness. The ongoing conflict and subsequent assault on Gaza have made outside aid severely restricted, plunging the region into a critical nutrition crisis.
The latest U.N. assessment indicated that over 15% of children under the age of 2 in northern Gaza were acutely malnourished, with 3% suffering from life-threatening severe wasting. In southern Gaza, 5% of young children were also acutely malnourished. These figures represent a drastic decline in the nutritional status of the population within a short period, alarming U.N. agencies.
The conflict has had devastating consequences for Gaza’s children, with the overall nutrition crisis among the population reaching unprecedented levels. The dire situation in Gaza calls for urgent action to address the escalating child mortality and humanitarian needs in the region.