Exclusive: Gaza running out of specialised food to save malnourished children
That's according to the U.N. and humanitarian agencies.
And the rate of malnutrition among children is escalating quickly, UNICEF's Salim Oweis said.
'We are facing a dire situation in that we are running out of therapeutic supplies. We only have 3,000 cartoons. That's equivalent to treating only 3,000 children.'
But in the first two weeks of July alone, UNICEF treated 5,000 Gazan children facing acute malnutrition.
Oweis said these crucial high-calorie supplies would be depleted by mid-August if nothing changed.
Meanwhile, the WHO's malnutrition prevention program may also have to cease as it's running out of nutritional supplements.
And Save the Children has not been able to bring in its own supplies since February.
:: July 14, 2025
Gaza's food stocks have been running out since Israel, at war with militant group Hamas, cut off all supplies to the territory in March.
It lifted that blockade in May but imposed restrictions it says are needed to prevent Hamas stealing this aid.
Internal U.S. government analysis, seen exclusively by Reuters, found no evidence of systematic theft by Hamas of U.S-funded Gaza aid.
It was conducted by a bureau within the USAID and examined 156 incidents of theft or loss of U.S.-funded supplies between October 2023 and this May.
A State Department spokesperson disputed the findings, saying there is video evidence of Hamas looting aid.
The spokesperson also accused traditional humanitarian groups of covering up "aid corruption."
Humanitarian agencies say Israel's enduring restrictions mean only a trickle of essentials, including medicine, is currently reaching the Gazan people.
UNICEF said that from April to mid-July, over 20,500 children were admitted with acute malnutrition.
"What's really imperative right now is to, one, get a ceasefire immediately. That's the only solution for the suffering of the children and families in the Gaza Strip.'
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