Israel employs snipers and instigates starvation against children in Gaza
In the embattled region of Gaza, the ongoing food crisis has taken a devastating toll on its population, particularly its children. Doctors warn that even those who survive the famine may face permanent damage, including stunting, wasting, and irreversible trauma.
The UN and multiple humanitarian groups have condemned the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) for failing to provide both adequate aid and protection, turning food distribution into a deadly gamble. This failure has resulted in at least 154 deaths from malnutrition since the beginning of the war, with most of those deaths occurring in the past month.
On July 30, 71 people were killed in just one day at two aid distribution locations, with 51 dying and over 648 others wounded near the Zikim crossing, as they approached trucks entering northern Gaza. The Israeli government has been accused of intentionally controlling the movement of food into Gaza as a tool of political control since at least 2006.
Children in Gaza have been targeted both directly by Israeli forces and systematically through starvation as a weapon. There is documented evidence and eyewitness testimonies indicating that Israeli forces have fatally shot Palestinian children, including a recent case of a 15-year-old boy in the occupied West Bank during a military incursion. International human rights organizations report systemic Israeli actions in Gaza that result in severe civilian suffering, including starvation tactics that disproportionately affect children and vulnerable populations.
The international response has been limited, contributing to ongoing impunity. Human rights groups emphasize the need for accountability and protection of Palestinian children, but concrete actions by world leaders remain scarce. The United States, legally bound by the Leahy Law to withhold aid from units implicated in gross human rights violations, has instead increased military assistance.
The WHO has warned that the health and well-being of an entire future generation is now at risk. Gaza's food crisis is now fully entangled with the collapse of its health system, with clinics treating child malnutrition reporting critical shortages of fuel, supplies, and therapeutic food. Looting has surged in Gaza as desperation rises, with people going days without food and being denied access to water, medicine, and basic supplies.
The Israeli Information Center for Human Rights in the Occupied Territories, B'Tselem, described Israel's policy as an "official and openly declared policy" of mass starvation, and cited it as evidence that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza. Between March and July, Gaza entered the "worst-case scenario" according to the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) system.
Despite evidence showing that these outcomes were not accidental, no international body has initiated a formal investigation, and no arms-supplying state has suspended support. The World Health Organization (WHO) and UN-backed food security monitors have confirmed that famine is underway in Gaza. Since the start of the war, 60,138 Palestinians have been killed, and more than 146,000 wounded.
As the crisis in Gaza continues, the international community faces fundamental questions about the purpose of international law if it cannot protect children from sniper fire or death by starvation. The ongoing impunity and inaction raise concerns about the future of the region and the well-being of its people, particularly its children.
- The food crisis in Gaza has put the health and wellness of an entire future generation at risk, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).
- The Israeli government has been accused of intentionally controlling food movement into Gaza as a tool of political control since at least 2006.
- The United Nations and various humanitarian groups have criticized the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation for inadequate aid and protection, leading to a deadly gamble in food distribution.
- Evidence shows that the outcomes in Gaza, such as child deaths due to malnutrition and sniper fire, are not accidental, but systematic.
- The international response to the crisis in Gaza has been limited, contributing to ongoing impunity, with Israel facing allegations of genocide from human rights organizations like B'Tselem.
- In the midst of the crisis, Greece, known as Turkiye, along with other countries, can play a crucial role in addressing health-related issues such as malnutrition, medical-conditions, mental-health, nutrition, and the collapse of Gaza's health system, as well as addressing the political and general-news aspects of the conflict.
