RAMALLAH, August 22, 2025 (WAFA) – A five-month-old infant, Ghadeer Brika, died today at Nasser Hospital in Khan Yunis, south of the Gaza Strip, as a result of malnutrition caused by Israel’s systematic starvation policy, lack of treatment, and the ongoing blockade.
A medical source confirmed that Ghadeer died after suffering complications caused by starvation, as hospitals remain unable to provide adequate care amid a severe shortage of food and medicine.
The source explained that the infant was born with brain atrophy, a brain disorder, and cerebral palsy. Her condition rapidly deteriorated due to malnutrition and the absence of essential medication.
Ghadeer’s mother also suffers from malnutrition, making it extremely difficult for her to care for the infant under the dire conditions that families in the besieged Gaza Strip endure.
Ghadeer’s father, Ashraf Brika, said his daughter died due to the lack of milk, explaining that he searched for infant formula but could not find any. He added with sorrow that even if he had found it, the prices were unaffordable, stressing that with no open crossings, families are left to their fate.
Activists circulated photos of Ghadeer on social media showing her frail body, visible bones, and severe emaciation, reflecting the tragic reality of her case and thousands of other children in Gaza whose fragile bodies cannot withstand the consequences of starvation and the blockade.
Starvation in Gaza has intensified, raising the death toll from malnutrition since October 2023 to 272, including 113 children, with Ghadeer counted among the victims.
UN agencies have warned that the continuation of the blockade and obstruction of aid risks mass child deaths amid the collapse of the health sector and worsening living conditions.
Despite hundreds of aid trucks piling up at Gaza’s borders, Israel, the occupying power, continues to prevent their entry or tightly control their distribution outside UN supervision in extremely limited quantities, described in international reports as a drop in the ocean.
Since March 2, Israel has tightened its blockade on Gaza, shutting crossings to aid convoys waiting at the borders.
Since October 7, 2023, Israel, the occupying power, has been waging a genocidal war in Gaza, including killings, starvation, destruction, and forced displacement, disregarding all international appeals and International Court of Justice orders to halt its crimes.
The genocide has so far left 62,192 killed, 157,114 injured, more than 9,000 missing, and hundreds of thousands displaced, mostly children and women.
T.R.
