The humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza reached a new level of tragedy on Saturday, as hospitals across the besieged enclave reported the deaths of seven Palestinians, including two children, due to hunger and malnutrition in the past 24 hours.

Medical authorities confirmed that these deaths bring the total toll of starvation-related fatalities to 420, including 145 children, since the start of the Israeli blockade and assault. Doctors on the ground say the situation is worsening daily, with malnutrition cases flooding emergency rooms across the Strip around the clock.

According to local health officials, an estimated 900,000 children in Gaza are facing hunger, with 70,000 already in a state of severe malnutrition — a condition that poses an immediate risk of death if urgent aid does not arrive.

Humanitarian agencies have repeatedly warned of famine-like conditions created by Israel’s blockade, which has cut off food, water, fuel, and humanitarian access to Gaza for months. The United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) previously reported that malnutrition among children under five had doubled between March and June, describing the crisis as a man-made disaster and calling for unfettered humanitarian access.

Aid groups stress that Gaza’s famine is not a natural disaster but a direct consequence of the ongoing Israeli siege and bombardment, which have destroyed farmland, bakeries, and food distribution networks, leaving civilians with almost no means of survival.

International pressure continues to mount on Israel to lift its blockade and allow aid to flow freely, but rights groups say the response has been too slow, warning that every delay costs more innocent lives — many of them children. (ILKHA)