Gaza's Newborns Face Malnutrition Crisis amid Worsening Food Shortages
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Dominic Allen, a UN Population Fund Palestine representative, described conditions at Gaza's Emirati Hospital's maternity ward as deeply disturbing, noting a rise in malnourished newborns and still-born deaths.
"The doctors are reporting that they no longer see normal-sized babies," Allen told Al Jazeera. "What they do see though tragically is more stillborn babies and more neonatal deaths."
UN experts reported Friday that children in Gaza are suffering from severe and rapidly worsening food deprivation, with an alarming number facing life-threatening malnutrition. About one in every 20 children in northern Gaza is experiencing "severe wasting," the most critical sign of malnutrition, according to UNICEF.
Among children under 2, acute malnutrition has become fairly common across Gaza, with the most severe prevalence in the north. Even in relatively food-accessible areas like Rafah, 10 percent of children under 2 are acutely malnourished, and 4 percent are severely wasting.
Before the Israeli war, the rate of acute malnutrition among young children was less than 1 percent, and severe wasting was extremely rare, UNICEF said.
Lucia Elmi, UNICEF's special representative in the Palestinian territories, expressed alarm at the speed of health deterioration among malnourished children, highlighting the critical need for protein, vitamins, and fresh products.
The war in Gaza has taken a heavy toll on children, both physically and mentally, with over 12,000 children killed in the Israeli genocidal war. The situation has been exacerbated by daily struggles for food, with many parents choosing to prioritize their children's nutrition over their own.
Dominic Allen, who recently returned from Gaza, described conditions there as beyond catastrophic, noting widespread hunger and emaciation among the population.
Humanitarian groups have criticized Israel's aid restrictions, citing them as a major cause of the food shortage.
Save the Children's chief executive in the US, Janti Soeripto, described the situation in Gaza as the worst in the world for children, with conditions worsening each week.
Without a cease-fire, comprehensive assistance to Palestinians is challenging. Speaking from Rafah, Rachael Cummings, Save the Children’s director of humanitarian public health in the United Kingdom, said that the lack of sanitation — including dirty or salty water and sewage on the streets — was worsening the hunger crisis there.
"If a child isn't eating adequate food or the right composition of food — they have poor water, poor sanitation — they will get very sick, very quickly," Cummings said.
