Gaza's humanitarian crisis deepens: Infant dies from malnutrition as Israeli blockade tightens

Efforts to save infant Dalia at the Kamal Adwan Hospital in the northern Gaza Strip have failed due to health complications from a shortage of baby formula.

This scarcity has been exacerbated by the intensified Israeli blockade on northern Gaza since Oct. 7, 2023.

The 2-month-old was lying on a bed at the neonatal intensive care unit as a Palestinian doctor performed cardiac massage in a final attempt to save her life.

Dalia was not the only infant lost to malnutrition. In recent weeks, 27 Palestinians, including infants, have died in northern Gaza due to food shortages.

Residents face scarcities in food, water and infant formula due to the Israeli blockade.

Hospitals also suffer from shortages of medical equipment and medication, compounded by electricity cuts.

To mitigate the catastrophic effect on patients and war casualties, hospitals rely on small power generators and solar panels to provide energy for medical operations.

One-third of children younger than 2 in northern Gaza are acutely malnourished, the UN Agency for Palestinian Refugees, or UNRWA, said on March 16.

"Children's malnutrition is spreading fast and reaching unprecedented levels in Gaza," UNRWA wrote on X. "Famine is looming. There is no time to waste."

On March 15, the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) said that "31 per cent - or 1 in 3 children under 2 years of age-in the northern Gaza Strip suffer from acute malnutrition, a staggering escalation from 15.6 per cent in January."

As a result of the Israeli war and restrictions that contradict international law, Gazans are on the brink of famine because of the crucial shortages.

Nearly 2 million Palestinians have been internally displaced in the besieged territory, which has been under an Israeli blockade for 17 years.

In an attempt to address the crisis, Arab and foreign countries continue to airdrop aid to northern areas of the enclave. But those efforts remain insufficient and fail to meet the urgent needs of Palestinians.

Israel has waged a deadly military offensive on Gaza since a cross-border attack, led by the Palestine resistance group, Hamas, killed nearly 1,200 Israelis in early October.

Nearly 32,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children, have since been killed in Gaza, and more than 74,000 injured amid mass destruction and shortages of necessities.

The Israeli war has pushed 85% of Gaza's population into internal displacement amid a crippling blockade of most food, clean water and medicine, while 60% of the enclave's infrastructure has been damaged or destroyed, according to the UN.

Israel is accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice. An interim ruling in January ordered Tel Aviv to ensure its forces do not commit acts of genocide, and guarantee that humanitarian assistance is provided to civilians in Gaza.