World bodies concerned over child survival emergency in Gaza

The latest of these victims is seven-month-old girl, Salam, who died on Sunday while being treated by the UN agency for Palestinians, UNRWA. The tragedy came a day after authorities in Gaza said at least 67 children had already died of malnutrition since Israel’s war began.

The UN’s children’s agency, UNICEF, meanwhile, said that more than 5,800 children were diagnosed with malnutrition in Gaza in June, including more than 1,000 children in severe condition. The figure marks an increase for the fourth month in a row, the agency said in a post on X.

“Children’s bodies are wasting away. This is not just a nutrition crisis. It’s a child survival emergency,” the group added.

“Children’s bodies are wasting away. This is not just a nutrition crisis. It’s a child survival emergency,” the group added.

UNICEF and seven other UN agencies also issued a separate joint statement, warning that Israel’s blockade on the entry of fuel supplies into Gaza is threatening to shut down hospitals, water systems, sanitation networks and ambulances in the Strip.

In the statement, the agencies, which also included the World Food Program, the World Health Organization and the UN humanitarian office (OCHA), said they may have to stop their operations entirely “without adequate fuel”.

“This means no health services, no clean water, and no capacity to deliver aid,” the agencies said. “Fuel must be allowed into Gaza in sufficient quantities and consistently to sustain life-saving operations.”

Gaza’s Government Media Office, meanwhile, accused Israel and security contractors working at aid distribution points of intentionally attacking civilians. In a statement, it called United States-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) sites “death traps” and described the situation as “genocide engineering under US sponsorship”.

At least 805 people have been killed and 5,250 wounded while attempting to collect aid since the GHF started operating in May.

In its statement, UNICEF called the situation “a child survival emergency,” adding that “aid must be delivered at speed and scale.”