In Gaza, children are now dying not from bombs, but from empty stomachs. On the 654th day of Israel's war, starvation has become an accelerating killer across the besieged enclave, as border crossings remain sealed and humanitarian aid is blocked. The Gaza Health Ministry reported that 19 people—including four-year-old Razan Abu Zahir, who spent half her life under bombardment—died of hunger in the past 24 hours. Razan joins at least 70 children who have succumbed to starvation since the conflict began. Alongside famine, Israeli airstrikes killed 27 Palestinians and wounded others, according to hospital officials. For the first time since the war began, Israeli forces—including engineering and armoured units from the Golani Brigade—launched a ground incursion into southern Deir al-Balah in central Gaza. Army Radio reported the operation could last weeks. The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) declared that starving civilians is a war crime that must never be used as a weapon. OCHA added that 88% of Gaza's territory is now under Israeli evacuation orders, affecting around 2.1 million people who have already been forcibly displaced multiple times. In apparent retaliation for OCHA's condemnation, Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar refused to renew the visa of Jonathan Whittall, who heads OCHA's office in the occupied Palestinian territories, effectively expelling him. The siege has also crippled Gaza's health system. Hamas said Israeli forces abducted Dr. Marwan Al-Hams, director of field hospitals in Gaza, while he was visiting a Red Cross facility in Rafah. Soldiers reportedly fired on the ambulance carrying him, killing several civilians, including journalist Tamer Al-Za'anin. Hamas urged the international community, including the Red Cross and WHO, to condemn the attack and press for the release of detained medical staff. Meanwhile, Gaza Municipality warned of an imminent catastrophe after the shutdown of the city's main desalination plant and water pipelines, leaving large areas completely without water. The Gaza Health Ministry reported a total of 134 deaths (including four recovered bodies) and 1,155 injuries over the past 24 hours. Since 7 October 2023, the death toll has risen to 59,029, with 142,135 wounded. The blockade has drawn sharp criticism abroad. Belgium's King Philippe condemned the severe humanitarian violations in Gaza as "a disgrace to humanity" and urged the UN Secretary-General to act immediately. Germany criticised the so-called "Gaza Humanitarian Foundation," saying its aid mechanisms fail to reach civilians, and called on Israel to comply with international humanitarian law and allow aid agencies to operate freely. UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer described the humanitarian situation as unbearable and renewed calls for an immediate ceasefire. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan warned that Gaza's people "will not surrender" and said Israel will ultimately be undone by its own ambitions. Inside Israel, former Israeli army Chief of Staff Moshe Ya'alon broke ranks with the military establishment, warning that forced evacuations, demolitions, and starvation in Gaza amount to war crimes and violate Israel's moral values. "These are breaches of everything we stand for," he posted on X (formerly Twitter). The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) repeated its call to lift the blockade, revealing that food prices in Gaza have surged fortyfold. "We have enough food outside Gaza to feed the entire population for over three months," the agency said. "Lift the siege and let the aid in—safely and at scale." UN Special Rapporteur Francesca Albanese compared Israel's deliberate starvation of two million civilians and killing of children to Nazi atrocities. Reflecting on the death of a disabled man from hunger, she wrote: "Our generation was taught that Nazism was the ultimate evil—and it was. Today, a state is starving millions and shooting children for sport under the protection of democracies and dictatorships alike. This is the new abyss of brutality." Meanwhile, Israeli Settlement Minister Orit Strook called for widening military operations even at the risk of Israeli hostages' lives. "You can't win a war like this. We must fight a decisive battle, even if it endangers the captives," she said in a radio interview. As the siege tightens, the humanitarian collapse is worsening. The UN warns that nearly all of Gaza is either under evacuation orders or Israeli military control, pushing millions into an ever-shrinking strip of land. UNRWA says children are "withering before our eyes" from hunger and dehydration, while doctors can do little but watch them slip away.
