February 26, 2025 | 01:42 pm
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The civil defense agency in Gaza reported on Tuesday that six newborns had died due to the severe cold that has gripped the war-torn Palestinian territory over the past week.
"As a result of a severe cold wave and the lack of heating, we have recorded the deaths of six newborns during the past week up until today," agency spokesman Mahmoud Bassal said as cited by Al Arabiya.
Doctors at the Patient's Friends Benevolent Society (PFBS) hospital in Gaza City reported treating nine newborns for hypothermia. Tragically, five of those babies died, and one who was initially in critical condition later succumbed to the cold. Additionally, the family of a two-month-old baby girl reported that their child died from the cold near the southern city of Khan Younis overnight.
The PFBS hospital has issued an urgent plea for the delivery of caravans and fuel, necessities to improve the living conditions for the approximately 945,000 Palestinian refugees currently living in tents and makeshift shelters.
Meteorologists have confirmed that temperatures have plummeted to zero degrees Celsius in recent days, as a cold front sweeps across the eastern Mediterranean.
Despite the ongoing ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, which has facilitated an increase in humanitarian aid entering Gaza, hundreds of thousands of Palestinians continue to live in inadequate shelter. Many are camped amidst the rubble of their destroyed homes, struggling to survive as temperatures drop drastically.
Hamas has repeatedly accused Israel of obstructing the delivery of essential shelter supplies to 2.4 million residents of Palestine, most of whom have been displaced multiple times during the Israeli genocide.
They attribute the deaths of the six newborns to Israel's alleged blocking of aid. “We call on the mediators to take immediate action to stop the occupation’s violation of the ceasefire agreement ... and facilitate the entry of essential supplies such as shelter, heating and urgent medical items into Gaza,” Hamas said in a statement.
“This is crucial to protect the children of Gaza.”
Most of the 2.1 million Palestinians have been displaced at least once during Israel's 16-month onslaught in Gaza, and nearly 70 percent of the territory's buildings are estimated to be damaged or destroyed. The healthcare system is also in a state of collapse, with only 18 of 35 hospitals partially functioning and lacking crucial medical equipment.
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