Displaced Palestinians try to take what remains in a pot of lentil soup at a food distribution point in Gaza City in the northern Gaza Strip. AFP
Arafat's death brings the number of children who have died from starvation and malnutrition in the past 24 hours to three, raising the total death toll from hunger-related causes in Gaza to 124.
Medical sources reported that 84 children were among the victims of the mass-starvation policy imposed by Israeli occupation forces in the Gaza Strip. This follows the deaths of two other infants from starvation and malnutrition announced on Friday. Over 900,000 children are currently suffering from hunger, 70,000 of whom have entered the stage of clinical malnutrition, placing them at imminent risk of death.
Israel’s systematic blockade of food, water, and medicine—particularly since 2 March—has plunged the Strip into what rights groups describe as a “man-made famine.”
The deliberate starvation of civilians has been widely denounced as a tactic of collective punishment and a war crime, intensifying calls from legal experts and human rights organizations to recognize Israel’s campaign as genocidal.
The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) had earlier warned that malnutrition among children under five had doubled between March and June due to the Israeli blockade of the Gaza Strip.
Meanwhile, hopes for a ceasefire faded this week as the United States and Israel abruptly pulled out of the latest round of negotiations with Hamas, despite the group’s stated willingness to continue talks. The move drew sharp criticism from international aid groups and regional governments, who have urged renewed diplomatic pressure to halt the war and end the starvation campaign.
According to medical sources cited by WAFA, a Palestinian man, Tamer Abu Daqqa, was killed and another was injured when Israeli artillery struck a residential house in Block 3 of Al-Bureij refugee camp.
Several casualties were also reported when Israeli forces shelled a gathering of people near the Bani Suhaila roundabout, east of Khan Yunis.
Since dawn, at least 31 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli fire, including six individuals who were waiting for humanitarian aid.
Israel's genocidal war on Gaza has claimed the lives of nearly 57,000 Palestinians, primarily women and children, since its outbreak in October 2023.
At least 143,965 others have been injured, with the toll expected to rise as many victims remain trapped under rubble or in areas inaccessible to rescue teams.
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