Malnutrition is spreading at record pace among children, according to the World Food Programme. More than 90% of young children and pregnant and breastfeeding women are subsisting on two or fewer food groups – mainly bread – with no access to fruit, vegetables, milk or proteins.
Almost half of Gaza’s population of 2.3 million is under 18, and the effects of starvation may follow those who survive for the rest of their lives: their brains and bodies, without the nutrients needed for growth, cannot properly develop, leading to health problems such as poor eyesight and learning difficulties later in life.
The strip’s healthcare system has collapsed, and a lack of water and food has made it nearly impossible for medical staff to alleviate the symptoms of malnutrition in vulnerable people.
Jihan Abu al-Jidyan, a mother of five waiting in a long line for watery soup in Deir al-Balah, is nine months pregnant. She is severely malnourished, and it is unlikely her body will be able to produce milk when her baby arrives. Her newborn is likely to have a low birth weight, which is associated with infant mortality, and will also be at severe risk of malnutrition.
“Ever since the war began I have been coming to the food charity. There are seven of us and I can’t find food for everyone. It’s a tough situation,” she said.
A promised surge in aid Benjamin Netanyahu promised Joe Biden after Israel’s killing of a team of international aid workers earlier this month has so far failed to materialise, charities say.
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