“Dr. al-Farra shows Bayan's protruding ribs, her scrawny hands. She squeezes his hand and manages to sit up during the examination, but her eyes are lifeless. He asks her to say something; she has to make an effort to say her name. During our conversation it emerges that the father of the family was wounded at the start of the war and lost a leg. Obtaining food became an impossible task.”
Summary (see link for full report):
“More and more hungry children: virtual tours of clinics in Gaza reveal the scale of the horror.”
The article contains distressing images.
The article describes the dire situation in clinics across the Gaza Strip, where many children suffer from severe malnutrition. Among the severe cases: Bayan, a 10-year-old girl who weighs only 17 kg (37 lbs), and Maya, a 5-year-old who weighs just 9.5 kg (21 lbs). Doctors and caregivers report a sharp increase in the number of children hospitalized in critical condition, amid severe shortages of food and medicine.
The situation has worsened due to the blockade and bombings, which have severely damaged the healthcare system and disrupted food supplies. The article notes that the local population struggles to obtain basic food, and clinics are overwhelmed by shortages and overcrowding.
Children, in particular, suffer from an acute lack of breast milk and infant formula, leading to a rise in malnutrition cases. The poor health conditions also weaken children’s immune systems, making them more vulnerable to infectious diseases.
The information in the article was gathered during a virtual tour organized for journalists by doctors inside Gaza hospitals, allowing them to observe firsthand the difficult conditions of the children and the extreme strain on the clinics.