Since the blockade began, humanitarian organizations like UNICEF have warned that children are at an increasing risk of starvation, illness, and death. Over 9,000 children have been admitted for treatment for acute malnutrition since the start of the year, highlighting the urgent need for food and medical assistance. The blockade has been described as a "silent killer," with families resorting to sharing minimal food supplies, such as a single can of beans among several members of one family according to Al Jazeera report.
Personal stories from families in Gaza illustrate the heartbreaking reality of this crisis. For instance, a mother described her five-year-old son, who has become emaciated and is suffering from severe malnutrition, stating that he hasn't eaten meat in months due to the unaffordability of food. Healthcare providers are struggling to care for malnourished children, with reports of infants and young children dying from hunger and malnutrition-related complications, reported cbc.ca.
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The IDF kills an average of 30 children each day in Gaza.
At least 18,000 children have been killed in Gaza between October 7, 2023, and January 15, 2025, according to recent data. This tragic figure highlights the severe impact of the ongoing conflict on children in the region. Additionally, it is reported that a child is killed in Gaza every 45 minutes, averaging about 30 children killed each day over the past 535 days.
Only in Gaza, children write their will!
Due to the high number of children killed daily in Gaza, many parents started writing the names of their children on their bodies because many time the children were bombed to smithereens and beyond recognition. That prompted a little girl named Heba, who was posted in Arabic on various social media platforms during the war who wrote her will the day before she was murdered by the Israeli Death Forces (IDF) in Gaza. I could not verify her last name or age. However, with her kind heart and pure words, Hiba scribbled the following message to her parents the day before she was killed. It was heart-wrenching to read. May her message reach the heartless and cruel world (Muslims and non-Muslims alike) who ignored Gaza's pain and suffering for the last 18 months. I am translating her will from Arabic into English:
"Hello, I am Hiba, I am writing my will now.
My money: 80 Shekels
45 shekels go to my mom
5 shekels for Zaina
5 shekels for Hashim
5 shekels to Leana
5 shekels to my maternal aunt Hiba
5 shekels to my maternal aunt Mariam
5 shekels to my maternal uncle Aboud
5 shekels to my maternal aunt Sarah
My toys:
They should all go to my sister Zaina and my friends:
Rima, Mena, Amal.
My clothes:
They go to my paternal cousins.
If there are any left, please donate them.
My shoes:
Donate them to the needy and the poor.
That is after you clean them of course.
My accessories:
They go to my paternal cousins and to Sarah, the daughter of my
maternal aunt Hiba."
Rest in peace, Princess Heba!
Mahmoud El-Yousseph is a Palestinian freelancer for Islamicity.com and ColumbusFreepress.com. He can be reached at elyousseph6@yahoo.com