Latest news with #AhmadAlhendawi
Scoop
12-08-2025
- Health
- Scoop
Gaza: 100 Children Starved To Death: A Needless Tragedy That Should Shame The World
The reported deaths of 100 children due to starvation in Gaza [1] since October 2023 is a devastating milestone that shames the world and demands long overdue urgent action, Save the Children said. Ahmad Alhendawi, Save the Children's Regional Director for the Middle East, North Africa and Eastern Europe, said: "What kind of a world have we built to let at least 100 children be starved to death while the food, water and medical supplies to save them wait just miles away at a border crossing? Children in Gaza are being starved by design by Israeli authorities. This was a wholly predictable and avoidable tragedy that humanitarian organisations have been warning about for months. We knew this would happen; no one can say they didn't. "With the Ministry of Health only able to provide data from what's left of Gaza's health facilities, we know these figures are just the tip of the iceberg. Who knows how many more young lives have been needlessly destroyed? "We also know that, for children, conditions like malnutrition can lead to lifelong health issues like stunting, weakened immune systems and organ failure. The effects of malnutrition can span generations, with its impacts on children making learning and development harder, creating a cycle of poverty for the entire population. Even those who survive this could be condemned to a lifetime of suffering unless the Government of Israel urgently allows the full, immediate, unfettered access of life-saving food, clean water, medical supplies and staff. "While these unbearable figures climb ever higher, we must not lose sight of the fact that these are not just numbers but young lives, full of potential. Elsewhere, these children could have grown up healthily, with a roof over their heads, a family to care for them, an education and opportunities for the future. But in Gaza, nearly two years of war and a chokehold on lifesaving aid have condemned children to mass deaths, suffering, and shattered futures - all of which are entirely preventable. "All available evidence indicates that the Government of Israel is using starvation as a method of warfare - a war crime under international law. Israeli authorities are obliged to provide aid to and protect civilians, and the international community is obliged to ensure that and enforce international law across the board. This dereliction of legal duty is on all of us. This is a moral scar on our shared humanity and shames the world." About Save the Children Save the Children has been working in Gaza for decades. We are running two primary healthcare centres in Gaza, providing essential services to children, mothers, and families, including screening and treatment for malnutrition. We are running mother and baby areas with support for infant and young child feeding and community management of acute malnutrition. We are ready to scale-up lifesaving aid alongside our partners. Our teams deliver water, run child-friendly spaces and mother and baby areas where pregnant and breastfeeding women can receive support on nutrition and infant feeding and psychosocial care. We also set up temporary learning centres to help children continue their education. We have trucks waiting to move to the border once approved, loaded with lifesaving items ready to enter, including nutrition and care items for mothers and babies and medical supplies, as well as tents and tarpaulins.
The Sun
07-08-2025
- Health
- The Sun
Gaza: Over 40% of Pregnant and Breastfeeding Women in Save The Children Clinics Malnourished
GAZA - Media OutReach Newswire - 7 August 2025 - More than four in 10 (43%) pregnant and breastfeeding women seeking treatment at Save the Children's clinics in Gaza in July were malnourished, said Save the Children. Some breastfeeding mothers are feeling so desperate and scared of dying, they are asking for infant formula to protect their infants if they are orphaned, said Save the Children. Of the 747 women Save the Children screened during the first half of July, 323 (43%) were malnourished [1] - potentially impacting their ability to care for their newborns - which was almost three times as many as in March when the Government of Israel reimposed a total siege on Gaza. Since April, staff at Save the Children's two primary healthcare centres operating in Gaza have reported monthly increases in the number of pregnant and breastfeeding women found to be malnourished, with food, water and fuel almost entirely unavailable. Poor nutrition and malnutrition during pregnancy can cause anaemia, pre-eclampsia, haemorrhage and death in mothers, lead to stillbirth, low birthweight, stunted growth and developmental delays for children. Without breastfeeding support, mothers are reportedly giving their babies bottles of water or water mixed with ground chickpeas or tahini, which can increase risk of malnutrition. Health experts globally promote breastfeeding to protect child health and improve survival, especially in the first months of life. In addition to essential nutrition, it provides antibodies that protect against common illnesses like diarrhoea, pneumonia and infections. But in Gaza, there have been reports of mothers struggling to produce breastmilk amid severe hunger, stress, dehydration and a lack of privacy caused by multiple displacements. There are 55,000 pregnant women in Gaza, according to United Nations Population Fund [3]. More than 70,000 children under five and 17,000 pregnant or breastfeeding women are facing acute malnutrition, according to the global humanitarian authority on hunger crises, the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) [4] which warned 'the worst-case scenario of famine is currently playing out' in Gaza. Ahmad Alhendawi, Save the Children's Regional Director for the Middle East, North Africa and Eastern Europe, said: 'Mothers are arriving at our clinics hungry, exhausted, and terrified their babies won't survive. Some are asking for formula so their baby can still be fed if they die. These are realities no mother should ever have to face. 'We know extreme stress can disrupt breastfeeding, and the relentless airstrikes, and obviously being in a war zone brings on a huge amount of distress - displacement and hunger in Gaza are taking a devastating toll on mothers. Many women are malnourished themselves yet still trying to nourish their babies. Supporting mothers to breastfeed can be a life-saving intervention for both mother and child.' 'When babies have no food, their bodies will start to shut down after a few days. They stop eating, lose energy, and start to waste away. Eventually their organs begin to fail and they become dangerously vulnerable to infection. Malnutrition is treatable and children can recover, but only if we reach them in time. The siege on entry of aid into Gaza must be urgently lifted. With sufficient, safe, and predictable entry processes and routes, humanitarian organisations know how to get the right assistance to people in time to save lives. Anything else, anything less, is a dangerous distraction that is costing mothers their babies, babies their mothers and, in the 'best case' scenario, undermining children's growth, development, and futures. If the world does not act now, more children will die from this preventable, man-made crisis.' Kalina Tsang, CEO of Save the Children Hong Kong, added: 'It is a mother's worst nightmare to be unable to feed her own child. The reports from our clinics in Gaza, of mothers so malnourished they cannot breastfeed and so desperate they are preparing for their own deaths, are utterly devastating. This is a complete collapse of humanity. We cannot turn away. I urge the public to help us reach these mothers and babies before it is too late. Your contribution to our Children's Emergency Fund can provide critical nutritional support and save lives, whenever humanitarian channels are available, in this man-made catastrophe.' The Gaza Ministry of Health has reported that 180 people have died of malnutrition-related causes since the start of the war in October 2023, including 93 children with at least 25 of these children dying in July as malnutrition rises on a dangerous trajectory. Save the Children is calling on the Government of Israel to uphold their obligations under international law and allow total access for all aid including breastfeeding support and, in the case of those who have no other option, the entry of infant formula and the essential supplies and services required for their regulated, targeted use in a way that is as hygienic as possible. Infants already devastated by war must not be left without the means to survive. Infant formula and the supplies required to administer it in a hygienic way, like all aid, has been restricted from entering Gaza due to the Israeli government-imposed siege on supplies. Save the Children has been working in Gaza for decades, running primary healthcare centres and providing essential services to children, mothers, and families, including screening and treatment for malnutrition. We are ready to scale-up lifesaving aid alongside our partners. Our teams deliver water, run child-friendly spaces and mother and baby areas where pregnant and breastfeeding women can receive support on nutrition and infant feeding and psychosocial care. We also set up temporary learning centres to help children continue their education. NOTE TO EDITORS: World Breastfeeding Week is held in the first week of August every year, highlighting that breastfeeding is one of the most effective ways to ensure child health and survival. [1]Save the Children screened 747 women from July 1st to 17th 323 (43%) of which were malnourished.
Scoop
09-07-2025
- Health
- Scoop
GAZA: Siege On Fuel Could Cut Off Supplies Of Clean Water To About 44,000 Children Supported By Save The Children
Fuel shortages in Gaza could cut off supplies of clean drinking water to about 44,000 children supported by Save the Children in a matter of days, increasing the risk of waterborne illnesses such as cholera, diarrhoea and dysentery, with these children only a small number of those impacted by fuel running out. Save the Children relies on fuel to transport safe, clean water daily to over 50 communities across the Gaza Strip, including about 44,072 children. But fuel supplies have been entirely restricted from entering Gaza since Israeli authorities imposed a total siege on 2 March, putting the entire humanitarian response at risk of grinding to a halt. Access to safe water is a fundamental human right, critical not just for drinking but for staving off disease that is rife across Gaza, where nearly everyone now lives in crowded shelters and tents having been displaced multiple times. Acute watery diarrhoea - one of the world's biggest killers of children - is present in 39% of people seeking medical consultations, according to the UN, and malnutrition is rife. The child rights organisation said it is critical - and obligatory under International Humanitarian Law - that Israeli authorities fully lift the siege on fuel and aid in parallel to current ceasefire talks, and that humanitarian access - and children's lives - are not used as bargaining chips in negotiations. Other aid organisations have sounded the alarm about their own operations as fuel supplies dry up, impacting water, sanitation and any remaining health facilities The UN is warning that hundreds of newborn babies in incubators are at imminent risk of death in a matter of days if the power goes off. Ahmad Alhendawi, Save the Children's Regional Director for the Middle East, Eastern Europe and North Africa, said: " Access to safe water is a fundamental human right. But in Gaza, it could now be denied to 44,072 children we deliver it to as fuel runs dry. "Not only is food and aid being withheld to an entire population on the brink - fuel that powers the systems that are critical for survival has not been allowed in for four months. This lack of fuel is posing a severe threat to the entire humanitarian response across Gaza. "There is no time to waste. While a definitive, lasting ceasefire is desperately needed to spare children from bombs and bullets, talks should not distract from the desperate need inside Gaza for fuel, aid and commercial supplies. These should not be used as bargaining chips - children need both safety and life-sustaining resources, as is their right and the Government of Israel's obligation to provide under international humanitarian law. The siege must immediately be lifted." Save the Children is on the ground in Gaza, as we have been for decades, ready to deliver lifesaving aid alongside our partners. Our teams deliver lifesaving water, run child-friendly spaces that offer safe places for children to play and receive psychosocial support, and set up temporary learning centres to help children continue their education during the crisis. Save the Children is running a primary healthcare centre in Deir Al-Balah, providing essential services to children, mothers, and families, including screening and treatment for malnutrition. About Save the Children NZ: Save the Children works in 120 countries across the world. The organisation responds to emergencies and works with children and their communities to ensure they survive, learn and are protected. Save the Children NZ currently supports international programmes in Fiji, Cambodia, Bangladesh, Laos, Nepal, Vanuatu, Solomon Islands and Papua New Guinea. Areas of work include child protection, education and literacy, disaster risk reduction and climate adaptation, and alleviating child poverty.
Qatar Tribune
26-06-2025
- Health
- Qatar Tribune
Israeli attacks kill 62 in Gaza, including three near aid site
Agencies Gaza At least 62 people have been killed in Israeli attacks across the Gaza Strip, medical sources told Al Jazeera, as Israel's national security minister called for a 'complete halt' of humanitarian aid supplies to the Palestinian territory. Local health authorities said on Thursday that Israeli air attacks killed at least 15 people in two separate attacks in Gaza City, including nine people who were killed at a school housing displaced families in the city's Sheikh Radwan suburb. A separate strike killed nine people near a tent encampment in Khan Younis, in the south of the enclave. Hospital sources told Al Jazeera that nine people were killed and wounded in a drone attack on Deir el-Balah's market street. At least 62 people were killed in Israeli attacks on Wednesday, medical sources said. The Palestinian Red Crescent Society reported that three people were killed and others injured by Israeli army fire while waiting for humanitarian aid near a distribution point at the Netzarim Corridor in central Gaza, the latest in a series of killings at aid distribution points set up by the controversial US- and Israel-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF). According to Gaza's Government Media Office, at least 549 Palestinians have been killed while attempting to get food from the sites since the GHF began operations on May 27. It said the attacks on those seeking aid have also caused 4,066 injuries, and that 39 civilians remained missing following the attacks. According to British charity Save the Children, more than half of the casualties in the attacks near distribution hubs were children. Of the 19 deadly incidents reported, the organisation found that children were among the casualties in 10 of them. 'No-one wants to get aid from these distribution points and who can blame them – it's a death sentence. People are terrified of being killed,' said Ahmad Alhendawi, Save the Children's regional director for the Middle East, North Africa and Eastern Europe. The GHF has been criticised by the United Nations and international humanitarian organisations, which say it is inadequate to deliver humanitarian supplies to Gaza's population. The GHF took over aid operations in May, following mounting criticism against Israel's months-long total blockade on aid getting into the Strip. That had pushed most of the population to the brink of starvation. On Thursday, National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir called for the Israeli government to reimpose its total blockade. 'The humanitarian aid currently entering Gaza is an absolute disgrace,' he said, adding that 'what is needed in Gaza is not a temporary halt to 'humanitarian' aid, but a complete stop.' Meanwhile, the UN agency for Palestinian refugees warned that families across Gaza are at risk of dying of thirst amid the collapse of water supply systems. UNRWA noted that only 40 percent of drinking water production facilities are still operating, and that 'Gaza is on the edge of a man-made drought. 'Extracting water from wells stopped due to fuel shortages, others located in dangerous areas that are difficult to access, pipelines are broken and leaking, and water tankers that often do not arrive,' the agency said.
Yahoo
26-06-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Israeli attacks kill more than 30 people in Gaza, including 3 near aid site
More than 30 people have been killed in Israeli attacks across the Gaza Strip, medical sources told Al Jazeera, as Israel's national security minister called for a 'complete halt' of humanitarian aid supplies to the Palestinian territory. Local health authorities said on Thursday that Israeli air attacks killed at least 15 people in two separate attacks in Gaza City, including nine people who were killed at a school housing displaced families in the city's Sheikh Radwan suburb. A separate strike killed nine people near a tent encampment in Khan Younis, in the south of the enclave. Hospital sources told Al Jazeera that nine people were killed and wounded in a drone attack on Deir el-Balah's market street, sending Wednesday's death toll from Israeli attacks above 30. The Palestinian Red Crescent Society reported that three people were killed and others injured by Israeli army fire while waiting for humanitarian aid near a distribution point at the Netzarim Corridor in central Gaza, the latest in a series of killings at aid distribution points set up by the controversial US- and Israel-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF). According to Gaza's Government Media Office, at least 549 Palestinians have been killed while attempting to get food from the sites since the GHF began operations on May 27. It said the attacks on those seeking aid have also caused 4,066 injuries, and that 39 civilians remained missing following the attacks. According to British charity Save the Children, more than half of the casualties in the attacks near distribution hubs were children. Of the 19 deadly incidents reported, the organisation found that children were among the casualties in 10 of them. 'No-one wants to get aid from these distribution points and who can blame them – it's a death sentence. People are terrified of being killed,' said Ahmad Alhendawi, Save the Children's regional director for the Middle East, North Africa and Eastern GHF has been criticised by the United Nations and international humanitarian organisations, which say it is inadequate to deliver humanitarian supplies to Gaza's population. The GHF took over aid operations in May, following mounting criticism against Israel's months-long total blockade on aid getting into the Strip. That had pushed most of the population to the brink of starvation. Since then, a trickle of aid has been allowed in, but the disastrous humanitarian situation has barely improved. On Thursday, National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir called for the Israeli government to reimpose its total blockade. 'The humanitarian aid currently entering Gaza is an absolute disgrace,' he said, adding that 'what is needed in Gaza is not a temporary halt to 'humanitarian' aid, but a complete stop.' Meanwhile, the UN agency for Palestinian refugees warned that families across Gaza are at risk of dying of thirst amid the collapse of water supply systems. UNRWA noted that only 40 percent of drinking water production facilities are still operating, and that 'Gaza is on the edge of a man-made drought. 'Extracting water from wells stopped due to fuel shortages, others located in dangerous areas that are difficult to access, pipelines are broken and leaking, and water tankers that often do not arrive,' the agency said. As Israel continues its assault on Gaza, Arab mediators, Egypt and Qatar, backed by the United States, reached out to the warring parties in a bid to hold new ceasefire talks, but no exact time was set for a new round, according to Hamas sources. Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who leads a coalition with far-right parties, insists that Hamas, which has ruled Gaza for nearly two decades, release all captives, relinquish any role and lay down its weapons to end the war. Hamas, in turn, has stated it would release the captives if Israel agrees to a permanent ceasefire and withdraws all its troops from Gaza. While it has conceded it would no longer govern Gaza, Hamas has refused to discuss disarmament.
