Children in Gaza's malnutrition rate surges, with one out of four experiencing it; Doctors Without Borders alleges this trend is deliberate, linking it to a "genocide strategy"
The city of Gaza is currently grappling with a surge in malnutrition cases, particularly among children and pregnant women. This escalation is primarily attributed to the Israeli blockade, which has resulted in severe shortages of food, medical supplies, and humanitarian aid.
The World Health Organization (WHO) and Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) have described this situation as a deliberate, man-made crisis. Key causes include the deliberate and sustained blockage of essential supplies by Israeli authorities, leading to widespread food insecurity and medical shortages.
The blockade has also imposed severe access and security constraints, preventing families from reaching health facilities. This worsens the situation as many children and pregnant women remain untreated. Pregnant and breastfeeding women are suffering from extreme famine and dehydration, impairing their ability to provide necessary nutrition to infants.
The current situation is alarming. Nearly one in five children under five in Gaza City is acutely malnourished, with the Global Acute Malnutrition (GAM) rate tripling since June 2025. Over 5,000 children under five have been admitted for outpatient malnutrition treatment in the first two weeks of July 2025, with 18% suffering from Severe Acute Malnutrition (SAM), the deadliest form. Among screenings at MSF facilities, 25% of young children and pregnant women were malnourished.
Malnutrition treatment centers are overwhelmed, with only four specialized centers in Gaza, facing shortages of supplies. A spike in malnutrition-related deaths in July 2025, including many children found dead upon arrival or shortly after admission at healthcare facilities, underscores the gravity of the situation.
The international community is responding with urgency. The WHO has called for an unhindered and consistent flow of aid and food supplies to Gaza to prevent further deterioration and catastrophic loss of life. MSF and UN agencies demand that Israeli authorities allow food and aid at scale into Gaza, criticizing the blockade as a weaponization of starvation. There is increased emphasis on the urgent need for operational humanitarian corridors and protection of healthcare facilities to tackle this preventable crisis.
Mohammed Abu Mughaisib, deputy medical coordinator of MSF in Gaza, has declared that the GHF food distributions, supported by the Israeli authorities and the United States, are repeatedly causing casualties among people desperately seeking aid. He described these distributions as war crimes committed in broad daylight under the guise of compassion.
The humanitarian situation in Gaza is described as dramatic, with the ongoing crisis threatening the lives of countless innocent civilians. The international community must act swiftly and decisively to alleviate this life-threatening crisis.
- The World Health Organization (WHO) and Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) have expressed concerns about the ongoing crisis in Gaza, describing it as a man-made disaster deliberately caused by the blockade.
- Amidst the surge in malnutrition cases, particularly among children and pregnant women, the international community has raised concerns about the lack of essential supplies, access to healthcare facilities, and the critical state of the general-news in Gaza.
- In response to the escalating health-and-wellness crisis in Gaza, various international organizations, including the WHO and UN agencies, are demanding that Israeli authorities allow for unhindered flow of food and aid supplies, nuclearing operational humanitarian corridors, and protection of healthcare facilities to prevent further loss of life.
