‘A massacre in slow motion’: Gaza’s babies die as the world looks away
More than 100,000 children in Gaza, including 40,000 infants, face a deadly nutrition crisis amid a total Israeli blockade, as pleas for urgent aid go unanswered.
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A morgue worker prepares the body of 5-month-old baby, Zainab Abu Halib, who died from malnutrition-related causes, according to Dr. Ahmed al-Farah, head of the pediatric department at Nasser Hospital, before her funeral, in Khan Younis, Gaza Strip, Saturday, July 26, 2025 (AP)
At least 14 more Palestinians, including two children, died of starvation in the Gaza Strip in 24 hours as famine induced by "Israel’s" months-long siege continues to worsen, the Health Ministry said on Monday.
“Hospitals recorded 14 new deaths in the past 24 hours due to famine and malnutrition, including two children who died of hunger,” the Ministry said in a statement.
This brings the death toll from starvation in Gaza since October 2023 to 147, including 88 children.
More than 100,000 children in the Gaza Strip, including 40,000 infants under the age of one, are at risk of imminent death due to a total absence of baby formula and nutritional supplements, the Gaza Government Media Office warned, according to Anadolu Agency.
In a stark statement, the media office described the crisis as a “massacre in slow motion,” accusing "Israel" of intentionally starving Gaza’s youngest by maintaining a complete blockade and sealing all border crossings.
The statement revealed that desperate mothers have been forced to feed their infants only water for days, while hospitals and clinics report a rising tide of children suffering from acute, life-threatening malnutrition.
Yesterday, hospitals in the Gaza Strip recorded six new deaths in 24 hours due to famine and malnutrition.
Director General of the Ministry of Health in Gaza, Dr. Mounir al-Bursh, reported that at least 133 people have died from starvation and malnutrition since the crisis deepened, 87 of them children. The deaths come as Gaza’s health care system collapses and access to basic food and medical supplies remains critically limited.
Call for immediate international intervention
Calling the situation “a shocking warning issued in the name of humanity and global conscience,” the media office issued an urgent appeal for the unconditional opening of all crossings and the swift entry of baby formula and nutritional aid.
As the Israeli genocide continues unabated, adding to it the excruciating blockade that has pushed #Gaza's population into famine, the world is becoming more and more fed up.
— Al Mayadeen English (@MayadeenEnglish) July 23, 2025
Condemnations against the abhorrent Israeli actions are flooding in from around the world. While these… pic.twitter.com/VKGN5AeesG
It demanded an end to "Israel’s criminal siege” and urged international bodies to intervene immediately to stop what it described as “a deliberate extermination campaign against children.”
In its closing remarks, the media office squarely blamed the Israeli government and its international backers for what it described as “a looming crime against humanity.” It warned that continued silence from the global community would amount to “explicit complicity in the genocide of Gaza’s children.”.
WHO warns malnutrition rates reach alarming levels in Gaza
In the first two weeks of July alone, more than 5,000 children under the age of five have received outpatient treatment for malnutrition in Gaza, with 18% diagnosed with Severe Acute Malnutrition (SAM), the deadliest form, the World Health Organization reported. This marks a sharp increase that began in May, with June seeing 6,500 admissions, the highest number since October 2023, it added.
Additionally, 73 severely malnourished children with medical complications were hospitalized in July, nearly double the 39 cases in June. So far in 2025, inpatient admissions have reached 263. The rising caseload is overwhelming Gaza’s only four malnutrition treatment centers, all of which are operating over capacity, facing critical fuel shortages, and projected to run out of supplies by mid-August, the WHO's statement noted. Health workers are exhausted, while deteriorating water and sanitation systems are worsening disease outbreaks, fueling a vicious cycle of illness and death, it maintained.
Middle Area worst-affected
Pregnant and breastfeeding women are also facing a dire situation. According to recent Nutrition Cluster data, over 40% are now severely malnourished. The worst-affected areas are the Middle Area, where rates have tripled since June, and Gaza City and Khan Younis, where they have doubled.
Further depicting a harrowing situation, the WHO warned that it’s not just starvation that is claiming lives; it’s also the desperate effort to find food. Since May 27, more than 1,060 people have been killed and 7,200 injured while attempting to reach food distribution points under dangerous and chaotic conditions.
Only 73 trucks entered Gaza as famine spreads: Gaza Media Office
The Government Media Office in Gaza warned on Sunday that famine in the Gaza Strip is not only ongoing but expanding in scale and severity, as the blockade continues and aid deliveries remain critically insufficient.
According to the statement, only 73 trucks entered Gaza, while airdrops were carried out in active combat zones, making access to the aid extremely difficult.
The office added that most of the aid was looted under the watch of the Israeli occupation forces, which it accused of deliberately obstructing the delivery of humanitarian supplies to organized distribution centers. This has further escalated the already dire humanitarian situation in the besieged territory.
According to the statement, the three recent airdrops combined did not match even the contents of two aid trucks. The office described the operations as a “farce” in which the international community is complicit through false promises and misleading information.
The statement concluded by stressing that the only real solution is to immediately open all border crossings, lift the blockade, and allow the unhindered entry of food and infant formula. It warned of the severe consequences of continuing this blockade and delaying essential aid.