Malnutrition kills 76 children in Gaza

GAZA, July 20 (YPA) – About 76 children died due to malnutrition a result of the ongoing Israeli siege on Gaza Strip, the Palestinian Ministry of Health in Gaza reported on Suinday.

The ministry said in a statement that At least 600,000 children under the age of 10 face a real risk to their lives, including 60,000 infants deprived of infant formula and 60,000 pregnant women suffering from severe malnutrition.

The statement warned of a worsening humanitarian disaster in the Strip, asserting that famine has reached catastrophic levels, threatening the lives of more than two million people, in light of the ongoing Israeli blockade and the ban on the entry of food and medicine for more than 140 days.

“Medical teams are working under harsh conditions, amid a near-total collapse of the health system and a serious decline in the availability of medicines and medical care, which threatens to cause mass deaths among patients with diabetes, high blood pressure, heart and kidney conditions, the elderly, and pregnant women,” it added.

The statement declared that more than 900 citizens were killed and almost 6,000 others wounded while attempting to obtain food aid in locations that have become death traps as a result of the direct targeting of civilians by the Israeli occupation.

The ministry’s statement called on the international community to assume its responsibilities and intervene immediately and urgently to pressure the occupation to open the land crossings and allow the entry of food and medical supplies without delay, warning that every passing moment means the loss of a new life in Gaza.

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