Famine Disaster in the Gaza Strip. 23 children have already died.
21.03.2024
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3 minutes
In the entire Gaza Strip, with over 2,200,000 inhabitants, there is currently not a single person who is certain of their next meal. This is shown in the IPC report, which stands for Integrated Food Security Phase Classification. According to analysts’ forecasts, over the next 3 months, more than half of the enclave’s residents will suffer from the highest level of hunger and malnutrition, threatening death. The Ministry of Health of the Gaza Strip claims that at least 23 children have already died from hunger and dehydration. “This evokes the worst memories from human history,” comments Małgorzata Olasińska-Chart from the Polish Medical Mission.
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Clashes, bombings, and shelling – so far these have been the main causes of death for over 30,000 people in the Gaza Strip. However, nearly six months after the conflict began, hunger is starting to become the main threat. Cut off from the world, residents of the Gaza Strip have practically depleted all their supplies, and humanitarian aid and food deliveries are being allowed in insufficient quantities to feed over 2,200,000 people remaining in the enclave. According to the IPC report, an intersectoral initiative examining malnutrition and hunger in humanitarian crises worldwide, over the next 3 months, more than 1,100,000 people in the Gaza Strip will be in the highest, “catastrophic” phase of hunger and malnutrition. It threatens death.
The whole world is watching as over two million people are sentenced to death by bombs and hunger. This evokes the worst memories from human history. Over 13,000 children have already died, bodies are still being pulled from the rubble. We cannot leave them without help.
comments Małgorzata Olasińska-Chart from the Polish Medical Mission.
Malnutrition and hunger are particularly dangerous for children – they hinder their development and increase the risk of serious illnesses. According to the IPC report, in recent months, practically all families in the Gaza Strip have skipped at least one meal a day. In the northern part of the enclave, 2/3 of people report that they have gone at least 10 days in the last month without eating at all. All data indicate that this situation will only worsen now. Only 60 trucks of food enter the Gaza Strip daily, compared to over 150 before the October escalation of the conflict.
Doctors also tell us about problems with extracting victims of bombings from under the rubble. There is a lack of appropriate equipment for this, which means that realistically we probably have tens of thousands more victims who have not been extracted from the buildings. This also results in a huge number of amputations, including among children. Some people lose limbs crushed by rubble just because help couldn’t reach them earlier.
adds Małgorzata Olasińska-Chart.
The Polish Medical Mission, along with its local partner, the Palestinian Medical Relief Society, is helping civilians in the Gaza Strip. The first tranche of aid funded by donors includes medical supplies, warm clothing, and milk for newborns.