Parents and carers in Gaza are having to resort to risky measures to keep babies from starving, like grinding up solid foods they are too young to digest. Baby formula is scarce and unaffordable and many mothers are too malnourished to breastfeed.

Jerusalem

Israel and Iran have agreed a ceasefire after a twelve day conflict. Meanwhile, Israel strikes in Gaza continue with the humanitarian crisis deepening.

Middle East Conflict

In Gaza, families are resorting to feeding infants herbal teas, strained lentil water, and ground chickpeas due to a severe shortage and high cost of baby formula. Many mothers are unable to breastfeed because of malnutrition, while others are separated from their babies due to displacement or death. Medical experts warn that feeding infants solid foods too early can cause serious health problems, including malnutrition, stomach issues, and choking hazards. Humanitarian organizations report that the situation is dire, with thousands of children at risk of starvation and the main global hunger monitoring body warning that famine is unfolding in the region. Despite Israeli announcements of steps to ease aid access, the UN World Food Programme states that sufficient aid is still not reaching those in need.

'It makes her cry in pain': Gazans resort to risky foods for babies

In a tent on a Gaza beach, three-month-old Muntaha drinks tea from a bottle. Her mother is dead. And a can of scarce baby formula costs $120, says her grandmother Nerma Hamouda. So Hamouda resorts to whatever is around, herbal tea, strained lentil water, or ground chickpeas that she says make Muntaha cry in pain. Hamouda raised eight of her own children and fears for the baby's fate. The doctor would tell me when I used to breastfeed, be careful for the first six months. The child isn't allowed to taste herbs, anything, anise, and even water is forbidden. So how am I supposed to feed the child? She's an orphan. How can I give her anise tea? How can I feed her lentil soup when the child isn't even three months old yet? Israel faces outcry for what humanitarian groups say is man-made starvation caused by its severe restrictions on aid. Many women cannot breastfeed due to malnourishment. Other babies are separated from their mothers due to displacement, injury or death. Muntaha's mother was hit by a bullet while pregnant, the family say. She gave birth prematurely while she was unconscious and later died. Their story matches a hospital account from the time. Muntaha weighs just under eight pounds, her family said, a little over half what she should weigh. She suffers stomach problems like vomiting and diarrhoea after feeding. Baby formula supplies are low even on paediatric wards, like this one at Al-Aqsa Martyrs' Hospital in Deir el-Balah. Four-month-old Juhri is trying to swallow thick tahini sesame paste. She won't drink it, says her mother, who also tries her on water and herbs. Feeding children solids too early can disrupt their nutrition, cause stomach problems and risk choking, paediatric health experts say. Humanitarian agencies have also reported cases of parents boiling leaves, eating animal feed and grinding sand into flour. Medical staff at the hospital speak of having to look on helplessly as children's health deteriorates with no safe way to feed them, Dr Khalil Dakran. In the Gaza Strip, we have thousands of children being starved because there is no milk for children under the age of two. These children, their mothers also have malnutrition, because there is no food, so the mothers cannot produce breast milk. Children in the Gaza Strip have reached the most severe stages of malnutrition. The main World Hunger Monitoring Body said this week a worst-case scenario of famine is unfolding in Gaza, and immediate action is needed to avoid widespread death. Israel has announced steps to ease aid access, but the UN World Food Programme said on Tuesday it was still not getting the permissions it needed to deliver enough aid.

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'It makes her cry in pain': Gazans resort to risky foods for babies

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