Latest news with #COGAT
Euronews
3 days ago
- Health
- Euronews
Mothers and doctors in Gaza say formula shortages risk babies' lives
Seham Fawzy Khodeir watched as her son lay inside a dilapidated incubator and listened to his faint cry, mixed with the muted sound of the equipment. The mother of six was increasingly concerned about the survival of Hisham al-Lahham, who was just days old, breathing with the help of equipment and being fed through a tube in his tiny nose. Most alarming is that the medical-grade formula he needs to survive is running out. 'There is no milk,' the 24-year-old mother told The Associated Press. He needs it to "to get better, to live, and to see life'. Hisham is among 580 premature babies at risk of death from starvation across the war-battered Gaza Strip, according to the Gaza Health Ministry. Khodeir and others blame Israel's blockade for the plight of their children. Doctors say that although some formula has been delivered, the situation is dire. 'These babies have no time… and no voice,' said Dr Ahmed al-Farah, head of the pediatrics and obstetrics department at Nasser Hospital, the main medical facility still partially functional in southern Gaza. For these babies in Gaza, 'an avoidable disaster' Khodeir's son is one of 10 babies in incubators at Nasser's neonatal intensive care unit. Last week, al-Farah rang the alarm, saying the hospital's stock of medical-grade formula was 'completely depleted'. He said the tiny babies who relied on it would face 'an avoidable disaster' in two to three days. His pleas were answered, in part, by the delivery of 20 boxes of formula sent over the weekend by a US aid group, Rahma Worldwide. The new delivery is enough to cover the needs for the 10 infants for up to two weeks, al-Farah said. Al-Farah, however, expressed concern about future deliveries, saying that it wasn't guaranteed that more formula would be allowed into Gaza. 'This is not enough at all,' he said. 'It solved the problem temporarily, but what we need is a permanent solution: Lift the siege'. Meanwhile, the fortified formula required for newborns is already out of stock at Al-Rantisi Hospital in Gaza City, its director, Dr Jamil Suliman, said. 'Many mothers are unable to breastfeed due to severe malnutrition,' he said, warning of a looming crisis. Infants are among the hardest hit by Israel's blockade, which started on March 2 with the complete ban of any food, water, shelter, or medication. Under mounting international pressure and repeated warnings of famine from the United Nations, Israel began allowing what Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called 'minimal' aid, starting May 19. Since then, more than 1,000 tonnes of baby food, including formula, have entered Gaza, according to COGAT, the Israeli defense agency in charge of aid coordination in the Palestinian territory. 'Food for babies is certainly entering [the Gaza Strip], as the organisations are requesting it we are approving it, and there is no withholding of food for babies,' a COGAT spokesperson said. But Gaza's health officials say that for these babies, that aid hasn't included enough critical medicine, formula, medical equipment, and spare parts to keep the existing equipment operational. Israel has defended its blockade Israel has said the blockade aims to pressure Hamas into releasing the 50 hostages it still holds from its Oct. 7, 2023, attack on southern Israel that sparked the war. Fewer than half are still believed to be alive. Israel has accused Hamas of siphoning aid, without providing evidence. The United Nations says there's been no significant diversion of aid. Militants killed around 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and took 251 hostage on Oct. 7. Most of the hostages have been released by ceasefire agreements. The war has unleashed unrelenting destruction, with more than 56,000 Palestinians killed and more than 131,00 wounded in Israel's offensive, according to Gaza health officials. The officials don't distinguish between combatants and civilians but say more than half the casualties are women and children. A crisis at Gaza's hospitals The war and the blockade have sparked a humanitarian crisis, creating shortages of the most basic necessities and pushing Gaza's health care system to the brink of collapse. Seventeen of the enclave's 36 hospitals remain partially functioning, providing health care to more than 2 million people amid bombings, rising malnutrition rates and dwindling medical supplies. "Starvation is increasing," said Jonathan Whittall, head of the U.N.'s humanitarian affairs office for the occupied Palestinian territories. More than 110 children have been admitted for treatment for malnutrition every day since the start of this year, he said. Human Rights Watch said in a recent report that all medical facilities in Gaza are operating in unsanitary and overcrowded conditions and have serious shortages of essential health care goods, including medicine and vaccines. The Health Ministry has repeatedly warned that medical supplies and fuel were running out at hospitals, which use fuel-powered generators amid crippling power outages. Calling for a lift on the blockade, Whittall said hospitals were forced to ration the little fuel they have 'to prevent a complete shutdown of more life-saving services'. Nasser Hospital was forced to cut off electricity for some departments, despite the nonstop flow of patients, as part of a plan to save fuel, said Ismail Abu-Nimer, head of engineering and maintenance. Supplies have been running out amid the influx of wounded people, many coming from areas close to aid distribution centers, said Dr Mohammad Saqer, Nasser's director of nursing. 'The situation here is terrifying, immoral, and inhumane,' he said.
The Hill
4 days ago
- Health
- The Hill
Doctors and moms say these babies in Gaza may die without more formula. They blame Israel's blockade
KHAN YOUNIS, Gaza Strip (AP) — Seham Fawzy Khodeir watches as her son lies inside a dilapidated incubator and listens to his faint cry, mixed with the muted sound of the equipment. The mother of six is increasingly concerned about the survival of Hisham al-Lahham, who was just days old, breathing with the help of equipment and being fed through a tube in his tiny nose. Most alarming is that the medical-grade formula he needs to survive is running out. 'There is no milk,' the 24-year-old mother told The Associated Press. He needs it to 'to get better, to live and to see life.' Hisham is among 580 premature babies at risk of death from starvation across the war-battered Gaza Strip, according to the Gaza Health Ministry. Khodeir and others blame Israel's blockade for the plight of their children. Doctors say that although some formula has been delivered, the situation is dire. Their desperation comes as the war in Gaza has been overshadowed by the Israel-Iran war. 'These babies have no time … and no voice,' said Dr. Ahmed al-Farah, head of the pediatrics and obstetrics department at Nasser Hospital, the main medical facility still partially functional in southern Gaza. Khodeir's son is one of 10 babies in incubators at Nasser's neonatal intensive care unit. Last week, al-Farah rang the alarm, saying the hospital's stock of medical-grade formula was 'completely depleted.' He said the tiny babies who relied on it would face 'an avoidable disaster' in two to three days. His pleas were answered, in part, by the delivery of 20 boxes of formula sent over the weekend by a U.S. aid group, Rahma Worldwide. The new delivery is enough to cover the needs for the 10 infants for up to two weeks, al-Farah said. Al-Farah, however, expressed concern about future deliveries, saying that it wasn't guaranteed that more formula would be allowed into Gaza. 'This is not enough at all,' he said. 'It solved the problem temporarily, but what we need is a permeant solution: Lift the siege.' Meanwhile, fortified formula required for newborns is already out of stock at Al-Rantisi Hospital in Gaza City, its director, Dr. Jamil Suliman, said. 'Many mothers are unable to breastfeed due to severe malnutrition,' he said, warning of a looming crisis. Infants are among the hardest hit by Israel's blockade, which started on March 2 with the complete ban of any food, water, shelter or medication. Under mounting international pressure and repeated warnings of famine from the United Nations, Israel began allowing what Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called 'minimal' aid, starting May 19. Since then, more than 1,000 tons of baby food, including formula, have entered Gaza, according to COGAT, the Israeli defense agency in charge of aid coordination in the Palestinian territory. 'Food for babies is certainly entering (the Gaza Strip), as the organizations are requesting it we are approving it, and there is no withholding of food for babies,' a COGAT spokesperson said. But Gaza's health officials say that for these babies, that aid hasn't included enough critical medicine, formula, medical equipment, and spare parts to keep the existing equipment operational. The Palestinian Center for Human Rights said in a report Monday that fortified infant formula was nearly depleted from local markets, with several types already completely out of stock. 'Any limited quantities available in some pharmacies are being sold at skyrocketing prices, far beyond the purchasing power of most families,' it said. COGAT said the baby food is being distributed mostly through international organizations — not via the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, an Israeli-backed private contractor that has drawn criticism from other groups. Palestinian witnesses and health officials say Israeli forces have opened fire on crowds heading to GHF sites. The Israeli military says it has fired warning shots. Israel has said the blockade aims to pressure Hamas into releasing the 50 hostages it still holds from its Oct. 7, 2023, attack on southern Israel that sparked the war. Fewer than half are still believed to be alive. Israel has accused Hamas of siphoning aid, without providing evidence. The United Nations says there's been no significant diversion of aid. Militants killed around 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and took 251 hostage on Oct. 7. Most of the hostages have been released by ceasefire agreements. The war has unleashed unrelenting destruction, with more than 56,000 Palestinians killed and more than 131,00 wounded in Israel's offensive, according to Gaza health officials. The officials don't distinguish between combatants and civilians but say more than half the casualties are women and children. The war and the blockade have sparked a humanitarian crisis, creating shortages of the most basic necessities and pushing Gaza's health care system to the brink of collapse. Seventeen of the enclave's 36 hospitals remain partially functioning, providing health care to more than 2 million people amid bombings, rising malnutrition rates and dwindling medical supplies. 'Starvation is increasing,' said Jonathan Whittall, head of the U.N.'s humanitarian affairs office for the occupied Palestinian territories. More than 110 children have been admitted for treatment for malnutrition every day since the start of this year, he said. 'Our warehouses stand empty while Israel restricts shipments to minimal quantities of mainly medical supplies and food,' Whittall added. Human Rights Watch said in a recent report that all medical facilities in Gaza are operating in unsanitary and overcrowded conditions and have serious shortages of essential health care goods, including medicine and vaccines. 'Since the start of the hostilities in Gaza, women and girls are going through pregnancy lacking basic health care, sanitation, water, and food,' said Belkis Wille, associate crisis, conflict and arms director at Human Rights Watch. 'They and their newborns are at constant risk of preventable death.' The Health Ministry has repeatedly warned that medical supplies and fuel were running out at hospitals, which use fuel-powered generators amid crippling power outages. Whittall said hospitals were forced to ration the little fuel they have 'to prevent a complete shutdown of more life-saving services.' 'Unless the total blockade on fuel entering Gaza is lifted, we will face more senseless and preventable death,' he said. Nasser Hospital was forced to cut off electricity for some departments, despite the nonstop flow of patients, as part of a plan to save fuel, said Ismail Abu-Nimer, head of engineering and maintenance. Supplies have been running out amid the influx of wounded people, many coming from areas close to aid distribution centers, said Dr. Mohammad Saqer, Nasser's director of nursing. 'The situation here is terrifying, immoral, and inhumane,' he said. ___ Magdy reported from Cairo. Melanie Lidman contributed from Tel Aviv, Israel.
Irish Times
15-06-2025
- Health
- Irish Times
Israeli fire kills at least 41 people in Gaza, local health authorities report
Israeli fire and airs trikes killed at least 41 Palestinians across Gaza on Sunday, local health authorities said, at least five of them near two sites operated by the US-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF). Medics at Al-Awda Hospital in the central Gaza Strip said at least three people were killed and dozens wounded by Israeli fire as they tried to approach a GHF site near the Netzarim corridor. Two others were killed en route to another site in Rafah in the south. An air strike killed seven other people in Beit Lahiya, in the north of the enclave, medics said. In the Nuseirat camp in central Gaza Strip, medics said an Israeli air strike killed at least 11 people in a house. The rest of the 41 were killed in separate air strikes in the southern Gaza Strip, they added. There was no immediate comment from the Israeli military. READ MORE The GHF began distributing food packages in Gaza at the end of May after Israel partially lifted a near three-month total blockade. Scores of Palestinians have been killed in near-daily mass shootings trying to reach the food. The United Nations rejects the Israeli-backed new distribution system as inadequate, dangerous, and a violation of humanitarian impartiality principles. Later on Sunday, COGAT, the Israeli military aid co-ordination agency, said that this week it had facilitated the entry of 292 trucks with humanitarian aid from the UN and the international community, including food and flour, into Gaza. It said the Israeli military would continue to permit the entry of humanitarian aid into the enclave while ensuring it did not reach Hamas . Hamas denies Israeli accusations that it steals aid and says Israel is using hunger as a weapon against the Gaza population. The Gaza ministry for health said in a statement on Saturday that at least 300 people have so far been killed, and more than 2,600 wounded, near distribution sites since the GHF began operations in Gaza. 'These are not humanitarian aid, these are traps for the poor and the hungry under the watch of occupation planes,' said Munir Al-Bursh, director general of the ministry for health. 'Aid distributed under fire isn't aid, it is humiliation,' Mr Bursh posted on X on Sunday. The war in Gaza erupted 20 months ago after Hamas-led militants raided Israel and took 251 hostages and killed 1,200 people, most of them civilians, on October 7th, 2023, Israel's single deadliest day. Israel's military campaign since has killed nearly 55,000 Palestinians, most of them civilians, according to health authorities in Gaza, and flattened much of the densely populated strip, which is home to more than two million people. Most of the population is displaced, and malnutrition is widespread. – Reuters
Asharq Al-Awsat
15-06-2025
- Health
- Asharq Al-Awsat
Israeli Fire Kills 41 People in Gaza, Medics Say
Israeli fire and airstrikes killed at least 41 Palestinians across Gaza on Sunday, local health authorities said, at least five of them near two aid sites operated by the US-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF). Medics at Al-Awda Hospital in the central Gaza Strip said at least three people were killed and dozens wounded by Israeli fire as they tried to approach a GHF site near the Netzarim corridor. Two others were killed en route to another aid site in Rafah in the south. An airstrike killed seven other people in Beit Lahia town north of the enclave, medics said. In Nuseirat camp in central Gaza Strip, medics said an Israeli airstrike killed at least 11 people in a house. The rest were killed in separate airstrikes in the southern Gaza Strip, they added. There was no immediate comment from the Israeli military. The GHF began distributing food packages in Gaza at the end of May after Israel partially lifted a near three-month total blockade. Scores of Palestinians have been killed in near-daily mass shootings trying to reach the food. The United Nations rejects the Israeli-backed new distribution system as inadequate, dangerous, and a violation of humanitarian impartiality principles. Later on Sunday, COGAT, the Israeli military aid coordination agency, said that this week it had facilitated the entry of 292 trucks with humanitarian aid from the United Nations and the international community, including food and flour, into Gaza. It said the Israeli military would continue to permit the entry of humanitarian aid into the enclave while ensuring it did not reach Hamas. Hamas denies Israeli accusations that it steals aid and says Israel is using hunger as a weapon against the Gaza population. The Gaza health ministry said in a statement on Saturday that at least 300 people have so far been killed, and more than 2,600 wounded, near aid distribution sites since the GHF began operations in Gaza. "These are not humanitarian aid, these are traps for the poor and the hungry under the watch of occupation planes," said Munir Al-Bursh, Director-General of the health ministry. "Aid distributed under fire isn't aid, it is humiliation," Bursh posted on X on Sunday. The war in Gaza erupted 20 months ago after Hamas-led fighters raided Israel and took 251 hostages and killed 1,200 people, most of them civilians, on October 7, 2023, Israel's single deadliest day. Israel's military campaign since has killed nearly 55,000 Palestinians, most of them civilians, according to health authorities in Gaza, and flattened much of the densely populated strip, which is home to more than two million people. Most of the population is displaced, and malnutrition is widespread.
Yahoo
11-06-2025
- Yahoo
Report: More than 28 killed near Gaza aid distribution site
More than 28 people have been killed near a distribution point for humanitarian aid in the Gaza Strip, the WAFA news agency reported on Wednesday, citing hospital sources. The Palestinian news agency said the deaths occurred near an aid distribution point in the Netzarim Corridor and were caused by Israeli forces. The Israeli military said soldiers had fired warning shots at people who were advancing while "posing a threat to the troops" in the area. "This is despite warnings that the area is an active combat zone," it said in a statement. It said it was aware of reports regarding casualties and was reviewing the details. The information from both sides could not initially be independently verified. Deadly clashes near aid distribution points have taken place repeatedly in recent days. In late May, Israel eased its blockade of aid deliveries to the besieged territory. The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), a US organization backed by the governments of Israel and the United States, began delivering aid to Gaza, bypassing the UN and other international organizations. The GHF's distribution has been controversial. Palestinians attempting to collect food and other aid have been killed by gunfire at the distribution points on several occasions. Israel says 108 truckloads of humanitarian aid entered Gaza More than 100 truckloads of humanitarian aid, including flour and other food, have crossed into the Gaza Strip via the Kerem Shalom crossing in the south, Israel's COGAT agency for Palestinian affairs said on Wednesday. The 108 trucks belonging to the UN and the international community had crossed over on Tuesday, it said. The Israeli military would "continue to facilitate humanitarian assistance in the Gaza Strip while making every effort to ensure that the aid does not reach the hands of the Hamas terrorist organization," COGAT said. Israel has accused UN bodies of allowing Hamas to seize aid intended for the population. The GHF says that it has so far distributed around 12 million meals in Gaza. Israeli authorities say that 350 aid transports have entered the coastal region over the past week. According to the UN, at least 500 to 600 truckloads are needed daily.
