The World Health Organization (WHO) and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) have issued alarming reports regarding the dire humanitarian situation in Gaza amid the ongoing conflict with Israel. According to WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, more than 8,000 children under the age of five in Gaza are suffering from acute malnutrition, with 1,600 of them facing severe acute malnutrition.

UNICEF has highlighted that nearly 3,000 children are at risk of dying due to lack of access to treatment for severe acute malnutrition in southern Gaza, where only two stabilization centers are operational due to insecurity and restricted access.

The conflict, which began with Israeli military actions on October 7 following Gaza’s Al-Aqsa Storm retaliatory operation, has exacerbated conditions in Gaza. The region has been subjected to a near-total siege, severely limiting the flow of essential supplies such as food, medicine, electricity, and water.

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The WHO chief emphasized that Gaza’s entire population is now confronting catastrophic hunger and conditions akin to famine. The ongoing military onslaught has resulted in the tragic loss of at least 37,202 Palestinian lives, predominantly women and children.

As early as March, the United Nations warned of the imminent risk of widespread famine in Gaza if the conflict persisted unchecked. “Once a famine is declared, it is too late for too many people,” stated Jens Laerke, spokesman for the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).

The situation in Gaza remains critical, with urgent calls for international intervention to alleviate suffering and prevent further loss of life. (Press TV)