Starvation looms as Israel's total blockade on Gaza enters its third month
Gazans are fighting over the last cans of food, malnourished mothers are struggling to make milk for their thinning babies, and doctors have begun counting down the days before the slow deaths by starvation begin to happen en masse.
Gazans are fighting over the last cans of food, malnourished mothers are struggling to make milk for their thinning babies, and doctors have begun counting down the days before the slow deaths by starvation begin to happen en masse.
“Within one week, we will see a severe starvation,” Dr. Ahmad Al-Farra, head of pediatrics and obstetrics at Nasser Hospital, told NBC News.
The besieged enclave is under its longest blockade of humanitarian aid since the war began on Oct. 7, 2023, as Israel’s total ban on the entry of all goods, including food, fuel and medical supplies, enters its third month. Despite international outrage, Israel has not only kept the gates shut past 63 days, but the security Cabinet is voting Sunday night to expand its offensive in Gaza.
For weeks, families were surviving on very little — fewer meals and smaller spoonfuls — and each day has brought a new low of deprivation.
Palestinians at a charity kitchen in Nuseirat on Sunday. The number of organizations that can continue to distribute food is dwindling.Eyad Baba / AFP - Getty ImagesParents are now watching their vulnerable children starve, with warehouses now empty and community kitchens forced shut. In a place where 80% of the population relies on aid, according to the United Nations, those aid agencies no longer have much to supply. What little food is left in the markets is sold at exorbitant prices.
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