Six Babies In Gaza Froze To Death Within A Week Due To The Extreme Winter Cold
Due to Israel's genocide, many families in Gaza are living in makeshift tents, struggling to stay warm in plummeting night time temperatures that often drop below 10˚C.
At least six babies froze to death within a week in Gaza from hypothermia due to the extreme cold and inadequate shelter.
Many families in Gaza are living in makeshift tents, struggling to stay warm in plummeting night time temperatures that often drop below 10˚C.
The most recent baby to die was one-month-old Ali al-Batran, who died on Monday, Dec. 30, one day after his twin brother, Jumaa, also died from the cold.
The twins were born one month prematurely and spent just a day in the nursery at the hospital in Deir el-Balah.
Doctors had instructed the family to keep the twins warm but it was impossible as they live in a makeshift tent, according to Al Jazeera.
The boys’ father described finding Jumaa with a head "as cold as ice" in their tent.
Four other babies have also died from the cold in recent days, including three-week-old Sila Mahmoud al-Faseeh and two other infants in a refugee camp.
Sila’s family has been sleeping on the sand as they don’t have enough blankets in their tent in Khan Yonis, Sila’s father, Mahmoud al-Faseeh told Al Jazeera.
The family found Sila unresponsive and stiff “like wood,” al-Faseeh said.
With Israel continuing blockade of aid and medical supplies, families are often left with only thin blankets and tarps for shelter, exposing them to bitter winds and rain.
UNICEF officials have warned that without immediate intervention and aid, more lives are at risk as winter progresses.
Since Oct. 7, 2023, Israel has been deliberately attacking civilians, destroying infrastructure as a form of warfare, according to a recent report by a UN special committee.
It has forcibly displaced more than 1.9 million Palestinians, approximately 90% of Gaza’s population.
69% of Gaza's structures have been damaged or destroyed, pushing families into makeshift shelters or tents, according to the UN.
Since Israel began its genocide in Gaza, it has killed more than 17,818 children, with at least 238 of them being babies who were born and killed during the genocide.
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