A large number of Palestinian children are malnourished, according to screening by UNRWA.
A statement from the head of UNRWA, Philippe Lazzarini, explained, “One in 10 children screened in UNRWA medical facilities is malnourished. Malnutrition among children in Gaza has increased amid severe shortages of nutrition supplies.”
“One in 10 children screened in UNRWA medical facilities is malnourished.
Malnutrition among children in #Gaza has increased amid severe shortages of nutrition supplies.
Salam, a 7-month-old baby died of malnutrition last week.
Before the war, malnutrition was rare in Gaza.… pic.twitter.com/mmuR6gtZI5
— UNRWA (@UNRWA) July 15, 2025
At the beginning of March, Israel imposed a full blockade on Gaza, including all aid. Tel Aviv maintained the total siege until the end of May. At that point, Israel began allowing a small amount of aid into the Strip to be distributed by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF).
The aid provided by the GHF is insufficient and distributed chaotically, leading to fights over food. “Salam, a 7-month-old baby died of malnutrition last week. Before the war, malnutrition was rare in Gaza. Now it is engineered and man-made,” Lazzarini said.
Additionally, there are only four GHF sites in Gaza, meaning most Palestinians have to travel long distances to receive a meager amount of food. On the trip, Palestinians are forced to cross IDF positions, where Israeli troops frequently murder them.
The UNRWA chief explained, “Meanwhile, more than 870 starving people were killed while desperately trying to access food from a flawed distribution system.”
Earlier this month, Amnesty International issued a report arguing that the GHF is a tool of Israel’s genocide in Gaza. “To deliberately impose conditions of life calculated to bring about their physical destruction as part of its ongoing genocide,” the org explained. “In the month following Israel’s imposition of a militarized ‘aid’ scheme run by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), hundreds of Palestinians have been killed and thousands injured either near militarized distribution sites or en route to humanitarian aid convoys.”
The Amnesty report concludes that “All the evidence gathered, including testimonies which Amnesty International is receiving from victims and witnesses, suggests that the GHF was designed to placate international concerns while constituting another tool of Israel’s genocide.”
The Freedom Flotilla Coalition (FFC) announced on Monday that another ship, the Handala, departed Italy. The boat will attempt ot break the Israeli blockade and is loaded with food for children. The FFC attempted to reach Gaza twice so far this year. One ship was damaged by an Israeli drone off the coast of Malta. A second ship was intercepted by Israel in international waters in the Eastern Mediterranean Sea.
