Let’s Address the Severe Hunger Crisis in Gaza Strip
A 10-year-old Palestinian boy, lying on a bed with only his bones remaining, has ultimately passed away. His condition was a stark example of the dire situation in the Gaza Strip amid the food crisis.
On the 9th (local time), The New York Times (NYT) reported that Yazan Kafarne, a 10-year-old boy from the Gaza Strip suffering from severe malnutrition, recently died. A photo of Yazan lying on a hospital bed circulated on social media, raising public awareness of the severity in Gaza.
In the released photo, Yazan appears emaciated with only bones left. Due to malnutrition, the flesh on his face had disappeared, revealing his skeletal structure, and his jaw was abnormally sharp. He lay on the hospital bed, relying on a hoodie and a thick blanket, with an intravenous drip inserted in his right arm, which was bent at an unusual angle.
Palestinian boy Yazan who died after severe malnutrition [Image source=Captured from overseas online community]
Yazan was a cerebral palsy patient. His family said that before the war, thanks to home treatment and medication provided by a physical therapist dispatched by a nonprofit organization, Yazan’s condition had improved enough for him to swim. The family also fed him nutritious foods such as eggs and bananas. However, after the war, the food crisis in Gaza changed everything.
Yazan needed to consume soft, high-nutrition foods, but during evacuation, such foods were unavailable. He also could not stay in unsanitary shelters and had to move several times. Yazan’s family barely reached Al-Awda Hospital in Rafah, the southernmost part of Gaza, but he ultimately died there.
The doctor who treated Yazan identified his cause of death as malnutrition and respiratory infection. The lack of nutrition weakened his immune system, allowing infectious diseases to spread within his body.
Currently, the Gaza Strip is facing an absolute shortage of drinking water and food. The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), citing data from the Gaza Ministry of Health, stated, "Since the end of last month until recently, 20 people including children and the elderly have died from starvation and dehydration."
Residents of the Gaza Strip receiving supplies dropped by transport aircraft of the US Air Force and the Royal Air Force. [Image source=Captured from overseas online community]
Even when international aid tries to enter Gaza via land routes, it is often blocked at checkpoints and unable to proceed. Because of this, the international community has recently conducted operations by air-dropping food and medical supplies.
However, air drops transport much smaller quantities at a time compared to trucks and are more costly. There is also concern that food supplies might be diverted to armed groups rather than Gaza residents. Previously, videos circulated on social media showing members of the Palestinian armed faction Hamas confiscating aid supplies from civilians, sparking controversy.
For these reasons, the United Nations is urging the normalization of land transport to enable large-scale delivery of relief supplies.
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