Director of Al-Shifa Medical Complex in Gaza, Dr. Mohammed Abu Salmiya affirmed Tuesday that deaths due to systematic Israeli starvation and malnutrition in the Gaza Strip have reached unprecedented numbers.

He described the situation in the Strip as critical and extremely dangerous, and that the current situation facing the Strip's residents is the most painful and dire in 22 months.

In his remarks to Qatar News Agency (QNA), Abu Salmiya said that hospitals in the Gaza Strip are in their worst condition, with the bed capacity at Al Shifa Hospital exceeding 250 %. He indicated that the hospital will run out of anesthesia supplies within a few days.

He highlighted that around 147 martyrs, including 88 children, died due to famine and malnutrition resulting from the siege and the prevention of food and medicine from entering, and that the number of deaths due to famine increases every hour in the Strip as the famine intensifies and food becomes scarce. He pointed out that the group most affected by the famine are children, as more than 17,000 children have entered the stage of complete malnutrition, and the Ministry of Health does not have what it takes to keep premature babies alive due to the lack of milk or food, especially since children's hospitals are crowded with thousands of patients due to the unprecedented level of hunger.

He said that children cannot withstand famine for long, and they cannot tolerate fasting for long periods, which puts them at great risk. They are the most vulnerable group and are susceptible to disease. Children outside of hospitals are also at great risk, as some Gaza residents resort to herbs to overcome the lack of food for themselves and their children. If the crossings are not opened and aid does not enter Gaza immediately, there will be a massacre. He added that 12 % of the cases they receive suffer from severe malnutrition due to the Israeli starvation policy and blockade on the Strip, and that about 90 % of the cases they receive do not receive food regularly on a daily basis.

He said that at least 10 cases of fainting, exhaustion, and lack of concentration due to malnutrition, aged 13 and above, arrive at Al Shifa Medical Complex alone every day, while those younger than that are taken to other hospitals and health centers. He pointed out that the real suffering begins for the wounded, injured, and sick after their lives are saved, as they do not have the food or treatment necessary to heal their wounds and provide them with medical care. He described the nutritional status of the wounded or hospitalized cases inside the corridors of the medical complex as extremely tragic.

The Director of Al-Shifa Medical Complex in Gaza told QNA that patients are not receiving any of the high-protein, high-energy, vitamin, and mineral foods that the occupation prevents from entering Gaza due to the devastating war on the Strip and the disastrous starvation policy. He stressed that the rate of severe malnutrition cases at Al Shifa Complex has reached 12 %, and that around 25 % of the cases have moderate to severe malnutrition.

He also pointed out that the Ministry of Health provides special nutritional supplements for children under 8 years old, but this does not meet the need, especially since patients and the injured need essential nutrition, especially for those suffering from malnutrition, including intravenous solutions, vitamins, minerals, amino nutrition, and high-energy nutritional supplements. There is also an urgent and dire need for medical evacuation for critical cases with brain and spinal injuries, for the wounded who need complex operations that require technologies not available in Gaza, and for patients who are threatened with death if they are not transferred immediately for treatment.

Abu Salmiya stressed the urgent need for the entry of medical and food supplies, such as therapeutic milk for children and infants, high-protein and high-calorie nutritional supplements, concentrated glucose solutions, ready-to-use therapeutic foods, intravenous antibiotics, and foods containing protein sources. He emphasized the occupation's deliberate use of starvation as a weapon of war, closing crossings and preventing the entry of aid, and predicted a rapid increase in the number of deaths in the coming days.

He pointed out that the residents of the Gaza Strip are facing a real humanitarian and health disaster with the continuation of the stifling blockade, the closure of the crossings, and the prevention of the flow of aid and baby milk for more than 150 consecutive days. Official estimates indicate that Gaza needs 600 relief trucks daily, including baby milk, humanitarian and medical aid, and fuel, to meet the minimum needs of the population, and about 250,000 cartons of milk per month to save infants from the policy of hunger and malnutrition that has invaded their weak bodies throughout the past harsh period. He considered that the radical and urgent solution is to immediately break the blockade, open the crossings, and ensure the flow of baby milk, medicines, medical supplies, and aid.

Concluding his remarks to QNA, Director of Al-Shifa Medical Complex in Gaza, Dr. Mohammed Abu Salmiya urged humanitarian, international, and UN organizations to respond to patients and the wounded and provide the necessary nutritional supplements and medicines to the population, especially children. He also called for the provision of basic necessities for citizens, such as flour, rice, vegetables, and baby formula, to reduce malnutrition and its negative effects on citizens' health.

The UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) has warned that malnutrition among children under five doubled between March and June as a result of the Israeli blockade on the Gaza Strip, which is experiencing a severe famine. This is described as the worst humanitarian disaster experienced by Palestinians, as food supplies and all basic necessities are lacking due to the blockade imposed since last March. All crossings have been closed, preventing international and UN organizations from carrying out their relief and humanitarian roles.

The famine coincides with a major vicious military escalation by the Israeli occupation forces, which have bombed homes, facilities, public places, and displacement camps in the Gaza Strip. This has resulted in hundreds of thousands of deaths and injuries, according to daily announcements by the Ministry of Health.