Israeli siege leaves 130,000 children trapped and facing starvation in Northern Gaza

130,000 children under 10 face starvation and dire conditions as aid remains blocked in northern Gaza.

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Image Credit: AFP

Quick summary:

• 130,000 children under 10 are trapped in northern Gaza, cut off from aid for over 50 days.

• Humanitarian groups warn famine is imminent as Israeli forces block food and medical supplies.

• Children make up 44 percent of Gaza’s death toll, with most casualties aged 5 to 9.

• Families describe dire conditions with no food, clean water, or medical help.

• Save the Children calls for immediate aid access to prevent further suffering.

An escalating humanitarian crisis in northern Gaza has left an estimated 130,000 children under the age of 10 trapped in dire conditions, cut off from food, medical aid, and basic necessities for over 50 days. Save the Children and other humanitarian organizations have sounded alarms, warning of imminent famine and widespread suffering as Israeli forces continue their siege, labeling the area a “dangerous combat zone” since early October.

The siege began when the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) declared northern Gaza a closed military zone, effectively sealing off the region from humanitarian access. According to Save the Children, no aid has been able to reach the area for over seven weeks, leaving families and children without food, clean water, or medical supplies. Local health officials report that the death toll across Gaza has surpassed 44,000 since October 2023, with children disproportionately affected.

Efforts to deliver aid have been repeatedly blocked. Between November 1 and November 18, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs reported that 27 out of 31 requests for aid access were denied, with the remaining four impeded on the ground. No fuel has been allowed into northern Gaza to power water and sanitation facilities, further exacerbating the crisis.

The Famine Review Committee has issued a stark warning that famine is imminent, if not already occurring, in parts of northern Gaza. Joyce Msuya, Acting Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator for the United Nations, described the situation as “an intensified, extreme, and accelerated version of the horrors of the past year.”

The personal accounts of those trapped in northern Gaza reveal the staggering human toll of the siege. Ruba, a mother of two, shared her story through Save the Children. “I am trapped with my children under relentless bombs, rockets, and bullets, with nowhere to run. My mother is paralyzed, and I cannot leave her behind. My brother has been killed, my husband was taken, and I don’t know if he’s alive,” she said.

“Both my children have developed rashes, and my daughter is passing blood, but there is no medicine, no help, and absolutely nothing I can do. They cry and ask me why we can’t just leave, why their father isn’t with us, why we can’t go back to a normal life,” Ruba added.

Children are the primary victims of the crisis. According to the United Nations, 44% of those killed in Gaza are children, with the majority aged between 5 and 9 years old. Recent vaccination campaigns were unable to reach approximately 10,000 children in northern Gaza, leaving them vulnerable to preventable diseases. Kamal Adwan Hospital, one of the only partially operational medical facilities in the area, has faced repeated attacks and critical shortages of supplies.

Many families remain in northern Gaza because they cannot flee, often due to elderly or disabled relatives or a lack of safe alternatives. Parents have described feeling “suffocated” and “without energy left in our bodies.”

Save the Children, which has worked in Gaza since 1953, has been forced to redirect supplies intended for northern Gaza to other regions due to the blockade. This includes 5,000 food parcels and 725 hygiene kits that could have provided relief to thousands of families.

Jeremy Stoner, Save the Children’s regional director, emphasized the urgency of the situation. “The situation in northern Gaza is not fit for human survival, and yet we know there are about 130,000 children under 10 trapped in those conditions, not to mention the thousands of older children and their families.”

The international response has been largely inadequate. Ibrahim Hooper, the national communications director for the Council on American-Islamic Relations, criticized the lack of meaningful action from the U.S. government. “Because the Biden administration steadfastly refuses to apply any real pressure on the genocidal Israeli government to allow food to be delivered to those being intentionally starved in northern Gaza, including some 130,000 children under age 10, it is up to the international community to take concrete action,” he said.

Hooper called on other nations to enact measures such as economic sanctions, arms embargoes, and the prosecution of Israeli officials for war crimes.

The deliberate obstruction of humanitarian aid raises significant concerns under international humanitarian law. The United Nations Human Rights Office has warned that the conditions in northern Gaza may result in “the potential destruction of the Palestinian population.”

Jeremy Stoner highlighted the broader implications of the crisis: “The war in Gaza is a war on children. There is no plainer way to illustrate this than to look at the people who make up the death figures—over four in every 10 people verified killed in Gaza are children. Of these children, most are 5-9-year-olds. These are children who should be learning to read and ride bikes. They should not be ending up in mortuaries.”

Humanitarian organizations are calling for immediate and unrestricted access to northern Gaza to deliver life-saving aid. They emphasize the need for a ceasefire to prevent further loss of life and to allow relief efforts to reach those in desperate need. Save the Children continues to advocate for systemic changes, including the cessation of hostilities and accountability for those obstructing aid.

Without immediate intervention, the situation in northern Gaza is poised to become one of the most devastating humanitarian crises of this century. As Jeremy Stoner implored, “Safe humanitarian access must be granted immediately to allow food, water, winter supplies, and medical assistance to reach those who are trapped in the death zone in the north. The international community must step up and make sure that happens, in line with their obligations.”

To Join the Save the Children campaign and advocate for child’s rights internationally, click here.

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