The World Health Organization (WHO) has raised alarms over the rising malnutrition rates in Gaza, warning that hunger could have a long-term impact on “an entire generation.”
Rik Peeperkorn, the WHO’s representative for the Occupied Palestinian Territory, spoke from central Gaza on Tuesday about the severe consequences of the ongoing humanitarian crisis in the besieged enclave.
Since early March, Israel has imposed a total blockade on Gaza, cutting off supplies as the regime resumed its military offensive despite a January 18 ceasefire agreement with Hamas.
Peeperkorn revealed that he had seen children in clinics who looked much younger than their actual age due to the effects of malnutrition. He said that he had visited a hospital in northern Gaza, where alarming figures showed that 11 percent of children tested were suffering from acute malnutrition.
“What we see is an increasing trend in generalized acute malnutrition,” Peeperkorn said during a press briefing via video link from Deir al-Balah. “I’ve seen a child that’s five years old, and you would say it was two-and-a-half.”
The official emphasized the devastating long-term consequences of the crisis, saying, “Without enough nutritious food, clean water, and access to healthcare, an entire generation will be permanently affected.”
He warned that stunted growth and impaired cognitive development were serious concerns for children who are not receiving the care they need.
Due to the blockade, the WHO has been unable to provide adequate aid. The organization currently only has enough resources to treat 500 children with acute malnutrition, a number that falls drastically short of what is needed to address the crisis.
According to figures from Gaza’s Health Ministry, at least 55 children have already died from acute malnutrition.
The situation is further compounded by weakened immune systems in children, which make them more vulnerable to illnesses such as gastroenteritis and pneumonia.
“You normally don’t die from starvation. You die from the diseases associated to that,” Peeperkorn said, highlighting the deadly combination of hunger and illness that is claiming the lives of the most vulnerable in Gaza.
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