The Starvation of the 21st Century

The Man-made Famine

“When the first child dies from malnutrition and dehydration, it becomes irrefutable that famine has taken hold.”(Human Rights Watch, 9 Apr. 2024) So what does it mean when more than 37 children have died, and almost 50,000 children have been found severely malnutritioned since Oct 2023?

96% of Palestinians in Gaza are acutely food insecure.(Al Jazeera, 20 Oct. 2024) People in northern Gaza have been forced to survive on an average of 245 calories a day; less than a can of beans.(Human Rights Watch, 9 Apr. 2024) Edible wild green leaves and clean water are now like gold in the eyes of starved civilians, and are hunted down on the daily. (Reuters, 24 June 2024)

Palestinians in Gaza have no choice but to shelter in the tonnes of piled rubble where buildings and houses used to stand.

On top of this, total bloodlines and cities are being demolished by intense Israeli bombardment. 43,508 people, of which 16,765 were children, were killed since September 7 2023. More than 102,684 were injured and about 10,000 missing under the rubble. (Al Jazeera, 9 Oct. 2023)

Why?

“We are imposing a complete siege on Gaza. There will be no electricity, no food, no water, no fuel. Everything will be closed,” Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant announced on October 9, 2023. “We are fighting human animals and we are acting accordingly.”(Reuters, 24 June 2024) Though Israel was pressured enough not to fully impose their plan of this siege, it is a siege nonetheless and is still ongoing on the people of Gaza. 

Before the war, about 500 humanitarian aid and food trucks entered Gaza each day. Now, Israel has reduced that to less than half. Many trucks that would try to get through the border into Gaza were attacked by Israeli groups.(Reuters, 24 June 2024)

In addition, the remaining Gazan hospitals have little resources to treat those malnourished. “Israel is making deliberate choices to starve civilians. Imagine what it is like, not only to be trying to survive on 245 calories day in, day out, but also having to watch your children or elderly relatives do the same. All whilst displaced, with little to no access to clean water or a toilet, knowing most medical support has gone, and under the constant threat of drones and bombs.” Said Amitabh Behar, Oxfam International Executive Director.(Human Rights Watch, 9 Apr. 2024) 

May God give patience and hope to those oppressed.