Gaza’s Descent into Despair: Starvation Claims Lives

In a heartbreaking report, the Palestinian Authority’s health minister announced that 29 children and elderly individuals have succumbed to starvation in Gaza over the past two days. This tragic development comes as the occupation army has launched renewed military strikes, resulting in at least 52 fatalities since dawn.

The health minister’s warning coincides with the anticipated arrival of food aid for Palestinians in Gaza, following the occupation army’s decision to permit limited supplies into the territory after nearly three months of global pressure to lift the blockade and cease its expanded military operations.

Jens Laerke, spokesperson for the UN humanitarian agency OCHA, indicated that approximately 90 trucks—out of nearly 200—carrying essential supplies such as medicine, wheat flour, and nutritional assistance have entered Gaza. However, Laerke noted that aid organizations are grappling with significant challenges in distributing these supplies due to insecurity, looting risks, and coordination issues with the occupation authorities.

Despite these efforts, the Palestinian Red Crescent reported that aid deliveries crossing the border have yet to reach those in need. Younis al-Khatib, president of the Palestine Red Crescent Society, expressed frustration, stating, “I can prove that nobody has received aid. Most of these trucks remain in Kerem Shalom at the border, inspected but not allowed into Gaza.” He warned that the limited number of trucks represents an “invitation for killing” due to the risk of mobbing.

Malnutrition has been on the rise in Gaza, according to medical professionals and aid workers, who have been sounding the alarm for months. Aid distribution has been hampered by displacement, the closure of bakeries operated by the UN World Food Programme due to a lack of cooking gas, and soaring prices for the scarce food available in shops.

“In the last couple of days, we lost 29 children,” reported Majed Abu Ramadan, the Palestinian Authority’s health minister, describing these deaths as “starvation-related.” He clarified that the total included both children and elderly individuals.

The Palestinian Authority maintains partial control over the West Bank, which has been under occupation since 1967, while Hamas has governed the Gaza Strip since 2007.

Earlier this month, the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) projected that nearly 71,000 children under the age of five would face acute malnutrition, with 14,100 cases expected to be severe over the next 11 months.

The occupation army imposed a blockade on all supplies in March, claiming that Hamas was seizing deliveries intended for civilians—a charge the group denies. A global hunger monitor reported earlier this month that half a million people in Gaza are facing starvation.

Abu Ramadan, who previously served as mayor of Gaza City, stated that only seven or eight out of Gaza’s 36 hospitals remain partially operational, with over 90% of medical supplies running critically low due to the blockade. “As far as I know, only flour for bakeries has been included in the shipments,” he added.

UN agencies have emphasized that the amount of aid entering Gaza falls drastically short of what is necessary to address the escalating crisis.

Umm Talal al-Masri, a 53-year-old displaced Palestinian in Gaza City, described the situation as “unbearable.” Hossam Abu Aida, 38, echoed her concerns, saying, “I am tormented for my children. For them, I fear hunger and disease more than I do the bombardment.”

Footage from a bakery in Deir el-Balah showed workers preparing stacks of pita bread with recently delivered flour, but the situation remains dire.

UNICEF reported that over 9,000 children have received treatment for malnutrition in Gaza this year, with food security experts warning that tens of thousands more cases are anticipated in the coming year. Experts caution that the territory could descend into famine unless the occupation army halts its military campaign and fully lifts the blockade; the World Health Organization has already indicated that people are facing starvation.

Recent data from Project Hope, a U.S.-based humanitarian organization still operating health clinics in Gaza, revealed a surge in malnutrition among children and pregnant and lactating women. Clinics reported that up to 42% of pregnant women and 34% of lactating mothers are malnourished.

“Children are increasingly affected,” the organization stated. “Our teams report that more families are relying on our clinics for nutritional supplements, with children visiting Project Hope clinics often subsisting on high-energy biscuits and therapeutic food—items intended for short-term survival rather than sustained nourishment.”

Ghadeer, a nurse with Project Hope in Gaza, shared, “The number of malnutrition cases has skyrocketed. Two months ago, we saw no more than 50 cases a day; now, we are witnessing around 200. Many children haven’t eaten real food in weeks—only the nutritional biscuits we distribute. They’re losing weight, becoming withdrawn, and falling ill more easily. We are doing everything we can, but we are witnessing the consequences of extreme hunger in an entire generation. Without increased food and aid, I fear for their future.”

Meanwhile, plumes of smoke rose over the northern Gaza Strip as the occupation army urged civilians to evacuate. The civil defense agency reported “52 martyrs and dozens injured” as a result of airstrikes across the territory.

The intensified military offensive has drawn criticism, with EU foreign ministers agreeing to review the bloc’s cooperation agreement with the occupation army.