logo
'Our children are dying slowly' says father searching for food in Gaza

'Our children are dying slowly' says father searching for food in Gaza

RTÉ News​21-05-2025
Father of four Mahmoud al-Haw and other Palestinians crowd around a soup kitchen in war-ravaged Gaza, surging forward and frantically waving pots.
Small children, squashed at the front, are in tears. One of them holds up a plastic basin hoping for some ladles of soup. Mr Haw pushes forward in the scrum until he receives his share.
He does this every day because he fears his children are starving. He sets out through the ruins of Jabalia in northern Gaza in search of food, waiting in panicked crowds for up to six hours to get barely enough to feed his family.
Some days he gets lucky and can find lentil soup. Other days he returns empty-handed.
"I have a sick daughter. I can't provide her with anything. There is no bread, there is nothing," said the 39-year-old.
"I'm here since eight in the morning, just to get one plate for six people while it is not enough for one person."
Israel has blocked the entry of medical, food and fuel supplies into Gaza since the start of March, prompting international experts to warn of looming famine in the besieged territory that is home to 2.3 million people.
Some trucks were allowed to enter Gaza on Monday, after Israel agreed to allow limited humanitarian deliveries to resume following mounting international pressure. But by last night, the United Nations said no aid had been distributed.
And as well as aid shortages, fighting in Gaza has intensified. Last week the Israeli military announced the start of a major new operation against militant group Hamas.
Medics in the territory say Israeli strikes have killed more than 500 people in the past eight days.
Israel denies that Gaza is facing a hunger crisis. It has said its blockade is aimed in part at preventing Hamas militants from diverting and seizing aid supplies. Hamas has denied doing so and accuses Israel of using starvation as a military tactic.
Gazans like Mr Haw, living in the epicentre of the war that is now in its 20th month, have no voice in the debate.
His world consists of walking to food kitchens each day, through the destruction wrought by Israeli bombardments in the war that was triggered by the Hamas-led attack on Israel on 7 October 2023, in which militants killed 1,200 people and took 251 hostages back to Gaza, according to Israeli tallies.
Israel's military campaign in Gaza has killed more than 53,000 people, according to Palestinian health authorities.
Even before the war - fought intensively around the family home in Jabalia, just north of Gaza City - Mr Haw's family had its struggles. His niece, who lives with them, uses a wheelchair.
His daughter has heart disease and bronchial asthma, he says.
Mr Haw climbs the stairs to his one-room apartment, where his children wait, sitting on a mattress. There is no surprise about what he has brought home - soup again.
He puts the soup in small tin bowls and hands them to his four children and his brother's two children.
The children, quiet, eat slowly and carefully.
"Thank God, as you can see, this is breakfast, lunch and dinner, thank God," he said. The day before, he said, his family had had nothing to eat.
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Latest Israeli strikes in Gaza kill at least 25 people as starvation crisis deepens
Latest Israeli strikes in Gaza kill at least 25 people as starvation crisis deepens

Irish Independent

timean hour ago

  • Irish Independent

Latest Israeli strikes in Gaza kill at least 25 people as starvation crisis deepens

The majority of victims were killed by gunfire as they waited for aid trucks close to the Zikim crossing with Israel, said staff at Shifa hospital, where the bodies were brought. The Israeli army did not respond to requests for comments about the latest shootings. Those killed in the strikes include four people in an apartment building in Gaza City among others, hospital staff and the ambulance service said. The strikes come as ceasefire talks between Israel and Hamas have hit a standstill after the US and Israel recalled their negotiating teams on Thursday, throwing the future of the talks into further uncertainty. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Friday his government was considering 'alternative options' to ceasefire talks with Hamas. His comments came as a Hamas official said negotiations were expected to resume next week and portrayed the recall of the Israeli and American delegations as a pressure tactic. Egypt and Qatar, which are mediating the talks alongside the US, said the pause was only temporary and that talks would resume, though they did not say when. The United Nations (UN) and experts have said that Palestinians in Gaza are at risk of famine, with reports of increasing numbers of people dying from causes related to malnutrition. While Israel's army says it is allowing aid into the enclave with no limit on the number of trucks that can enter, the UN says it is hampered by Israeli military restrictions on its movements and incidents of criminal looting. The Zikim crossing shootings come days after at least 80 Palestinians were killed trying to reach aid entering through the same crossing. ADVERTISEMENT The Israeli military said at the time its soldiers shot at a gathering of thousands of Palestinians who posed a threat and that it was aware of some casualties. Israel is facing increased international pressure to alleviate the catastrophic humanitarian crisis in Gaza. More then two dozen Western-aligned countries and more than 100 charity and human rights groups have called for an end to the war, harshly criticising Israel's blockade and a new aid delivery model it has rolled out. The charities and rights groups said even their own staff were struggling to get enough food. For the first time in months Israel said it is allowing airdrops, requested by Jordan. A Jordanian official said the airdrops will mainly be food and milk formula. UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer wrote in a newspaper article on Saturday that the UK was 'working urgently' with Jordan to get British aid into Gaza. Aid group the World Central Kitchen said on Friday it was resuming limited cooking operations in Deir al-Balah after being forced to halt due to a lack of food supplies. It said it is trying to serve 60,000 meals daily through its field kitchen and partner community kitchens, less than half of what it has cooked over the previous month. Helplines: If you have been affected by the contents of this article, click here for more information.

Israeli air strikes in Gaza Strip leave at least 25 dead, health officials say
Israeli air strikes in Gaza Strip leave at least 25 dead, health officials say

Irish Examiner

time2 hours ago

  • Irish Examiner

Israeli air strikes in Gaza Strip leave at least 25 dead, health officials say

At least 25 people were killed by Israeli air strikes and gunshots overnight, according to health officials and the ambulance service on Saturday, as ceasefire talks appear to have stalled and Palestinians in Gaza face famine. The majority of victims were killed by gunfire as they waited for aid trucks close to the Zikim crossing with Israel, said staff at Shifa hospital, where the bodies were brought. The Israeli army did not respond to requests for comments about the latest shootings. Those killed in the strikes include four people in an apartment building in Gaza City among others, hospital staff and the ambulance service said. The strikes come as ceasefire talks between Israel and Hamas have hit a standstill after the US and Israel recalled their negotiating teams on Thursday, throwing the future of the talks into further uncertainty. Palestinians mourn during the funeral of people who were killed while trying to reach aid trucks (Abdel Kareem Hana/AP/PA) Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Friday his government was considering 'alternative options' to ceasefire talks with Hamas. His comments came as a Hamas official said negotiations were expected to resume next week and portrayed the recall of the Israeli and American delegations as a pressure tactic. Egypt and Qatar, which are mediating the talks alongside the US, said the pause was only temporary and that talks would resume, though they did not say when. The United Nations (UN) and experts have said that Palestinians in Gaza are at risk of famine, with reports of increasing numbers of people dying from causes related to malnutrition. While Israel's army says it is allowing aid into the enclave with no limit on the number of trucks that can enter, the UN says it is hampered by Israeli military restrictions on its movements and incidents of criminal looting. The Zikim crossing shootings come days after at least 80 Palestinians were killed trying to reach aid entering through the same crossing. The Israeli military said at the time its soldiers shot at a gathering of thousands of Palestinians who posed a threat and that it was aware of some casualties. Marwa Barakat (centre) mourns during the funeral of her son Fahd Abu Hajeb (Abdel Kareem Hana/AP/PA) Israel is facing increased international pressure to alleviate the catastrophic humanitarian crisis in Gaza. More then two dozen Western-aligned countries and more than 100 charity and human rights groups have called for an end to the war, harshly criticising Israel's blockade and a new aid delivery model it has rolled out. The charities and rights groups said even their own staff were struggling to get enough food. For the first time in months Israel said it is allowing airdrops, requested by Jordan. A Jordanian official said the airdrops will mainly be food and milk formula. UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer wrote in a newspaper article on Saturday that the UK was 'working urgently' with Jordan to get British aid into Gaza. Aid group the World Central Kitchen said on Friday it was resuming limited cooking operations in Deir al-Balah after being forced to halt due to a lack of food supplies. It said it is trying to serve 60,000 meals daily through its field kitchen and partner community kitchens, less than half of what it has cooked over the previous month.

Gaza civil defence says Israeli forces kill 11 people
Gaza civil defence says Israeli forces kill 11 people

RTÉ News​

time2 hours ago

  • RTÉ News​

Gaza civil defence says Israeli forces kill 11 people

Gaza's civil defence agency said Israeli operations have killed 11 people in the Palestinian territory devastated by over 21 months of war. Civil defence spokesman Mahmud Bassal said the toll included four Palestinians killed in an air strike on the Al-Rimal neighbourhood of Gaza City in the territory's north. One other person was killed "after Israeli forces opened fire on people waiting for humanitarian aid" northwest of Gaza City, the agency said. Eyewitnesses said that several thousand people had gathered in the area to wait for aid. One of them, Abu Samir Hamoudeh, 42, said the Israeli military opened fire "while the people were waiting to approach the distribution point", located near an Israeli military post in the Zikim area, northwest of Sudaniyah. Another man was killed by a drone strike near the southern city of Khan Younis, while one was killed by artillery fire in the Al-Bureij camp in central Gaza, the civil defence said. The Israeli military said it was looking into the matter. In a separate statement, the military said it was continuing its operations in Gaza, adding that it killed members of a "terrorist cell" which it accused of planting an explosive device targeting soldiers. It added that over the past day the air force had "struck over 100 terror targets throughout the Gaza Strip". Mr Bassal also said that civil defence teams recovered the bodies of 12 people in the area of the Morag Corridor north of Rafah following Israeli bombardment the previous night. The recovery operation was conducted in coordination with the UN humanitarian office (OCHA), he said, adding that the bodies were taken to Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis. Media restrictions in Gaza and difficulties in accessing many areas mean AFP is unable to independently verify tolls and details provided by the civil defence agency and other parties. The Israeli campaign has killed 59,676 Palestinians, mostly civilians, according to the health ministry in the Hamas-run territory. Israel launched its military campaign in Gaza after a deadly attack by Palestinian militant group Hamas on 7 October 2023. Hamas's October 2023 attack resulted in the deaths of 1,219 people, most of them civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official figures.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store