Reporting
Gaza: residents and hospitals deprived of malnutrition affecting children
Gaza still faces food insecurity, aid delivered by truck, boat or parachute is still insufficient, because the needs are immense.
Around twenty children “
lost their lives due to malnutrition in Gaza
”, deplores Unicef.
The severe restrictions imposed by Israel on the entry of humanitarian aid into Gaza and the possible use of hunger as a weapon could “
constitute a war crime,
” says the UN.
Listen - 01:24
A young girl carries a canvas bag filled with food aid bearing the logo of the NGO World Central Kitchen, in Rafah, in the south of the Gaza Strip, March 17, 2024, © Mohammed Abed / AFP
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With our correspondents in Jerusalem,
Sami Boukhelifa
,
and in Gaza,
Rami Al Meghari
A long queue with children, adults, bowls and pots in hand: they queue in
the hope of obtaining a food ration
.
Hiba Abu Awad has two daughters and, after hours of waiting, she leaves with a plate of pasta: “
Yesterday I managed to have some bread, and today we are going to eat too.
It is God who provides for our needs.
Some days we eat, others we don't.
The little ones haven't eaten enough lately.
They have lost so much weight.
Especially her, she lost a lot of weight.
".
Hiba ponte Joud: with her sister Jouri, 3 and 6 years old, they regularly complain of stomach pain.
“
But I don’t have the courage to take them to the hospital.
They can’t do anything for them anyway,
” confides their mother.
In the center of the
Gaza
Strip , at Al Aqsa hospital, Dr. Iyad Abu Muaylaq admits his helplessness: “
We have nothing to give to the children to treat them.
What can we tell their parents
?
Feed them
?
There's nothing to eat.
And malnutrition leads to a whole bunch of complications
: kidney failure, muscle and heart weakness.
These children receive neither protein nor carbohydrates.
They suffer from an immune deficiency.
The slightest virus or bacteria infects them.
And in some cases, unfortunately, it results in death.
»
“
And we can’t even feed them intravenously.
Here, there is neither adequate medical equipment nor the necessary medications
,” regrets the doctor.
Read alsoGaza: aid restrictions imposed by Israel “could constitute a war crime”, according to the UN
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