One in 10 children screened in N agency for Palestinian refugees medical facilities is malnourished, says Philippe Lazzarin
A growing child hunger crisis in the Gaza Strip is "engineered," according to the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini, who issued a stark warning Tuesday about the catastrophic levels of malnutrition affecting children in the besieged territory.
"One in 10 children screened in UNRWA medical facilities is malnourished," Lazzarini wrote on X. "Malnutrition among children in Gaza has increased amid severe shortages of nutrition supplies."
He said a 7-month-old baby named Salam died from malnutrition last week, a tragic emblem of the worsening crisis. "Before the war, malnutrition was rare in Gaza. Now it is engineered & man-made," he added.
The humanitarian chief also condemned the deadly consequences of the food distribution system.
"More than 870 starving people were killed while desperately trying to access food from a flawed distribution system," he noted.
Lazzarini urged immediate action, stressing the urgent need for unhindered humanitarian access. "The UN including UNRWA and partners must be allowed to do their work & bring in humanitarian assistance at scale including for children."
He had a plea to end the violence: "Any additional delay to a ceasefire now will cause more deaths."
The Gaza Strip has faced extreme restrictions on food, medical aid and fuel amid the war with Israel.
UN agencies and human rights organizations have repeatedly warned about famine-like conditions, particularly affecting the most vulnerable -- children.
At least 998 Palestinians have been killed and more than 7,000 injured in the West Bank by Israeli forces and illegal settlers since the start of Israel's most current genocidal war on Gaza in October 2023, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry.
In a landmark opinion last July, the International Court of Justice declared Israel's occupation of Palestinian territory illegal and called for the evacuation of all settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.
