The World Health Organization (WHO) reported on Monday that an aid mission to two hospitals in northern Gaza revealed distressing scenes of children dying from starvation due to severe shortages of food, fuel, and medicines.
WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus stated that these visits to the Al-Awda and Kamal Adwan hospitals were the first since early October 2023, despite efforts to gain more regular access to the north of Gaza.
The situation at Al-Awda was particularly alarming, with one of the buildings being destroyed, and the Kamal Adwan hospital, the only pediatrics facility in northern Gaza, was overwhelmed with patients.
Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus conveyed the grim findings, noting that the lack of food resulted in the deaths of 10 children at the Kamal Adwan hospital.
The Gaza health ministry has reported a total of at least 16 children dying of malnutrition in the aid-deprived northern Gaza.
Last week, the United Nations warned of an “almost inevitable” famine in the Gaza Strip due to the ongoing war that started when Hamas carried out an unprecedented attack inside Israel on October 7.
The attack resulted in approximately 1,160 deaths, mostly civilians, and the abduction of 250 hostages by Hamas, according to Israel.
In response, Israel’s retaliatory offensive against the Palestinian territory has reportedly killed over 30,500 people, predominantly women and children, according to the health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza.
Tedros emphasized the dire lack of food at the two northern hospitals and highlighted the serious threat posed by the lack of electricity, especially in critical areas like the intensive care unit and the neonatal unit.
During the weekend mission, the UN health agency delivered 9,500 liters of fuel to each hospital along with essential medical supplies.
However, Tedros stressed that this is only a fraction of the urgent lifesaving needs and appealed to Israel to ensure humanitarian aid can be delivered safely and regularly.
He underscored the immediate need for scaled-up assistance to civilians, especially children, and health staff, while emphasizing that the key medicine needed for these patients is peace through a ceasefire.
