MSF urges Israel to let critical aid into Gaza as children freeze to death

"Citing the death of a 29-day-old premature baby, Said Asad Abedin, from severe hypothermia in southern Gaza's Khan Younis, MSF said on Friday that winter storms combined with the already dire living conditions [are] increasing health risks. list of 4 itemsend of list The death toll from extreme weather stood at 13 as of Thursday, according to Gaza's Ministry of Health. Another two-week-old baby, Mohammed Khalil Abu al-Khair, froze to death without access to proper shelter or clothing earlier this week."

"Ahmed al-Farra, head of the maternity paediatric department at Nasser Medical Complex, said in a video update that hypothermia is very dangerous for babies. If nothing is offered for these families in the tents, for warming, for mobile homes, for caravans, unfortunately, we will see more and more deaths, al-Farra said. Children are losing their lives because they lack the most basic items for survival, Bilal Abu Saada, a nursing team supervisor at Nasser Hospital, told MSF."

"In addition to the growing number of deaths, MSF said its staff has recorded high rates of respiratory infections that it expects to increase throughout the winter, posing a particular danger to children under five. As Gaza is battered by heavy rains and storms, hundreds of thousands of Palestinians continue to struggle in flooded and broken makeshift tents, the organisation added. MSF calls on Israeli authorities to urgently allow a massive scale up of aid into the Strip."

At least 13 people in Gaza, including two-week-old and one-month-old babies, have died from winter weather and lack of adequate shelter and aid. MSF warned babies and children are dying from harsh winter weather and urged easing of the aid blockade. A 29-day-old premature baby died from severe hypothermia in Khan Younis, and another two-week-old baby froze to death without shelter or clothing. Medical staff reported infants arriving cold with near-death vital signs and warned that hypothermia is very dangerous for babies. MSF recorded high rates of respiratory infections expected to rise and urged a massive scale-up of aid while hundreds of thousands remain in flooded makeshift tents.

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