Gaza Suffocates Under the Weight of Genocide: Diseases Ravage Children as the Entity Targets the Foundations of Life
The tragedy of Gaza is no longer measured solely by the number of martyrs and wounded. It is now seen in the bodies of children ravaged by disease and malnutrition, in families awaiting the recovery of their loved ones’ remains from beneath the rubble, and in a health sector reeling from an unprecedented collapse brought about by the war of genocide and the ongoing siege.
While the Zionist enemy continues to target civilians with bombing and killing, the circle of the humanitarian catastrophe widens to include the spread of infectious diseases, the collapse of medical services, and the destruction of the foundations of life. This situation confirms that the aggression no longer targets only buildings, but rather pursues the Palestinian people in every aspect of their daily lives.
Diseases Ravage Gaza’s Children
The deteriorating health indicators reveal the extent of the tragedy unfolding in the Gaza Strip. Dr. Ahmed Al-Farra, head of the pediatrics department at Nasser Medical Complex, announced the registration of approximately 10,000 cases of chickenpox among children, describing the number as exceptional and unprecedented, and warning of a further increase in infections in the coming period.
Diseases are no longer a passing threat in Gaza. A two-year-old child died from complications of an illness, exacerbated by the lack of vaccines, medicines, and medical supplies. This makes even simple illnesses, which would be fatal under normal circumstances, a deadly threat to the besieged children.
Al-Farra pointed out that overcrowding in shelters, the decline in healthcare, and the lack of resources have all contributed to the rapid spread of infectious diseases, coinciding with a rise in malnutrition among children.
He also warned of alarming health indicators, including anemia rates among pregnant women reaching between 50 and 55%, and miscarriages reaching approximately 47%, amidst a health situation that is deteriorating daily.
Gaza is losing its food supply. The repercussions of the aggression have not been limited to the health sector; they have extended to food sources and livelihoods. Luay Rajab, the media director at the Ministry of Agriculture in Gaza, revealed that more than 30,000 dunams of agricultural land have been rendered unproductive after being designated as part of the so-called “yellow line,” preventing thousands of farmers from accessing their land.
He explained that the currently cultivated areas do not exceed 5% of the total agricultural land in the Gaza Strip, after the agricultural sector suffered widespread destruction and production costs skyrocketed.
He pointed out that before the aggression, Gaza was self-sufficient in many types of vegetables and exported about 300 tons of them daily, while today the population relies on expensive imported vegetables amidst a worsening food crisis.
Relentless Bombardment
In parallel with the collapse of basic necessities, the Zionist enemy continues its aggression against various areas of the Gaza Strip, leaving more martyrs and wounded.
The head of Al-Shifa Medical Complex, Dr. Muhammad Abu Salmiya, confirmed the martyrdom of 35 people and the injury of about 150 others within 24 hours as a result of the Israeli aggression, noting that the majority of the victims were women and children.
He explained that the enemy continues to target areas near places that are supposed to be safe, with the return of scenes of families being wiped out and the emergence of the phenomenon of “lone survivors” among children, while the health sector is experiencing an unprecedented collapse due to the severe shortage of medicines and medical supplies.
In the latest atrocities, the enemy committed new massacres, resulting in the deaths of 13 martyrs within 24 hours. Among them was an entire family in the Al-Nasr neighborhood of Gaza City, where the father, mother, and three of their children were killed. Only one child survived, as he was not home at the time of the bombing.
Bodies Under the Rubble
In another tragic scene, civil defense teams in Gaza resumed search and rescue operations to recover the bodies of martyrs from under the rubble of destroyed homes, despite limited resources.
The civil defense explained that the new phase targets 147 destroyed homes, where it is believed that more than a thousand martyrs remain missing under the rubble. The teams possess only limited equipment, insufficient to address the scale of the massive destruction.
The first phase of the recovery operations managed to retrieve hundreds of bodies, while hundreds more remain under the rubble, awaiting equipment capable of reaching them.
Escalating Attacks
In the West Bank, attacks by Zionist settlers, supported by enemy forces, continue. Settlers set fire to a mosque in the village of Tuwana in Masafer Yatta, south of Hebron, in addition to burning Palestinian homes and vandalizing their property.
Several areas also witnessed attacks, raids, and acts of vandalism, coinciding with an escalation in incursions into the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound. The number of settlers who stormed the mosque in one week exceeded 1,489, under the protection of enemy forces.
Annihilation Targeting Life
Between a child dying from a treatable illness, a farmer losing his land and livelihood, and a family waiting to recover their children from under the rubble, the true extent of the tragedy unfolding in the Gaza Strip is revealed.
The tragedy in Gaza has gone beyond targeting individuals and buildings, extending to the very foundations of life. The health sector has been destroyed, food sources have been crippled, residents have been displaced, and they have been deprived of the most basic necessities for survival. Meanwhile, the Zionist enemy continues its crimes amidst an international silence that is powerless to stop the bloodshed of the Palestinian people.