Occupied Jerusalem, Oct. 16 (SANA) The Palestinian Health Ministry said 466 people had died from malnutrition and starvation in the Gaza Strip since 2024, including 157 children, as UNICEF warned that recent progress in tackling acute malnutrition remained fragile amid disruptions to supplies.
In a report published Friday, UNICEF said increased humanitarian assistance and the ceasefire had helped reduce the threat of famine, but warned that gains could be reversed without a predictable, continuous flow of commercial and humanitarian goods.
According to Reuters, Israel said on Wednesday that commercial goods were no longer entering Gaza, citing a tax dispute between local merchants and Hamas. UNICEF called for all crossings to remain open, warning that children and families would suffer if supply disruptions continued.
A report issued by the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) on Oct. 5 warned that funding shortfalls would significantly reduce daily hot-meal production and monthly household food-parcel distributions from October.
OCHA also reported that private-sector operators collected 788 commercial truckloads into Gaza between Sept. 21 and 27, 10% below the average for the previous four weeks. Kerem Shalom remained the only operational cargo crossing after Zikim closed in May, leaving supplies vulnerable to disruption, the report said.
The Palestinian Health Ministry projected that more than 1.4 million people, or 67% of Gaza’s population, would face crisis-level food insecurity or worse through the end of 2026. It also cited the declaration of famine in Gaza Governorate in August 2025.
Children and other vulnerable groups at risk
The ministry reported 158,001 cases of acute malnutrition among children under five between 2024 and August 2026, including 28,716 severe cases considered life-threatening. It said 157 children had died from malnutrition.
UNICEF reported that only one in three children under two was receiving a sufficiently diverse diet, while a June survey found chronic malnutrition affecting one in eight children under five.
The ministry said anemia among pregnant Palestinian women rose to 61% in 2026, from 41% before the war. Nearly 4,000 pregnancy losses were recorded in the first half of this year, more than three times the number in the previous six months.
Older people accounted for 189 reported malnutrition deaths, or 40.5% of the total. The ministry said 11% of older people had gone a full day without eating, while 68% had stopped or reduced their medication because supplies had run out.
UNICEF also warned that around 800,000 children remained displaced, many living in tents or unsafe buildings as winter approached.
The Palestinian Health Ministry called for safe, sustained and unrestricted access to food, therapeutic supplements and medicines, prioritizing children, pregnant and breastfeeding women, and older people. It also urged support for reviving local food production in Gaza.
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