Child Hunger Due To Famine in Gaza

Children are paying the highest price in what the United Nations calls a man-made catastrophe in Gaza.
Famine has been officially declared, with warnings that it's spreading rapidly.

As Israel continues to block the entry of food and medicine, children are wasting away.
At least 113 young Palestinians have died of starvation.

Al Jazeera’s Tareq Abu Azzoum is in central Gaza, where parents say they feel helpless.

The announcement of famine was predictable but at the same time preventable, if crossings were open.

What we are witnessing is a very deliberate blockade of the crossings, preventing desperately needed aid and food supplies, as well as medical supplies for hospitals.

This did not come as a surprise to people. It is a reality. People have been enduring this for the past 22 months. From the opening weeks of this genocide, it was clear that we were moving towards this outcome. The report only confirms what people have been saying and what residents have been experiencing day after day, which is an acute shortage of food and other basic survival necessities.

These are protections guaranteed under international law, yet the delivery of such life-saving supplies has not been secured for people in a war zone, let alone under genocide.

Even hospitals are running out of the most basic items, including bandages and painkillers, leaving them unable to respond adequately to the mass casualties pouring in.

Al Jazeera’s Hani Mahmoud reports.