Twenty-one months into Israel’s war in Gaza, the enclave is gripped by escalating scenes of death and hunger, with some killed while trying to reach aid, others dying of starvation, and growing condemnation of Israel’s conduct even among many of its closest allies.
Palestinians in Gaza are suffering from man-made “mass starvation” due to the aid blockade, the World Health Organization warned Wednesday. “Parents tell us their children cry themselves to sleep from hunger,” said Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. “Food distribution sites have become places of violence.”
The United Nations says more than a thousand people have been killed by Israeli forces while seeking food since late May, when the controversial new Israel- and US-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) began operations. Hundreds have died near GHF sites, according to the UN. The group, created to replace the UN’s aid role, has been widely criticized for failing to improve conditions.
All 2.1 million people in Gaza are now food insecure. Gaza’s health ministry said Tuesday that 900,000 children are going hungry, and 70,000 already show signs of malnutrition.