‘Beyond horrific’ conditions in northern Gaza as hunger soars and supplies dwindle, aid organizations warn

(TEL AVIV, Israel and GAZA STRIP) — The situation in northern Gaza is “beyond horrific” as people experience intense levels of hunger and overcrowded hospitals struggle to care for patients amid the ongoing Israel-Hamas war, international aid organizations warn.

Last week, Israeli forces ordered evacuations of several regions in the north, including Beit Hanoun, Jabalia and Beit Lahia, as they work to surround Hamas fighters who are allegedly in the area.

Medical staff in the north say they are getting calls from all over northern Gaza asking for help, but ambulances are unable to reach the injured.

“The situation is beyond horrific and is very difficult and indescribable,” Dr. Taghreed Al-Imawi, a member of the Palestinian NGO Juzoor for Health and Social Development and an OB-GYN doctor at Kamal Adwan Hospital in northern Gaza, said in a statement. “We have seen more than 23 pregnant women among the injured coming to the hospital since last week, wounded either by shrapnel or gunfire, suffering from fractures.”

Kamal Adwan was one of three hospitals that doctors say were ordered to evacuate last week, but medical staff have refused to do so. The Israel Defense Forces has not confirmed if hospitals were ordered to evacuate.

In an audio message sent in Arabic to ABC News, Dr. Eid Sabah, the director of the nursing department at Kamal Adwan Hospital, said the maternity ward is overflowing with children who were transferred from the ICU to accommodate the growing number of patients.

“Medical supplies are dwindling to nothing — especially medical supplies related to surgery, maternity and critical care,” he said. “This is very dangerous and hard. The medical staff is exhausted and are not enough to cover critical patient care. They work 24/7 nonstop.”

He went on, “We only have seven or eight beds in the critical care ward. This is terrifying. Patients on artificial respirators are suffering … we emphasize that we don’t have food. The medical staff can’t eat, and they have to take care of suffering patients.”

Gazans in the north say they are cut off from access to food, medicine and clean drinking water, and are unable to feed their families.

“We have not gotten any food or water for the past 11 days, the suffering is getting worse by the day,” Ismail, a father of two currently in the vicinity of Jabalia, said through the nonprofit organization CARE International. “All the necessities for survival are lacking here in the north, no hospitals, no safe place, no safe drinking water, no medications for our children.”

A new report released Thursday from the U.N.-backed Integrated Food Security Phase Classification initiative warned that the risk of famine persists across the entire Gaza Strip, adding that the “worst case scenario may materialize.”

If humanitarian aid delivery continues to be restricted, concerning levels of food insecurity and malnutrition will intensify, the IPC said.

The entire Gaza Strip has been classified as Phase 4 under the IPC, meaning there are large food consumption gaps that “are reflected in very high acute malnutrition and excess mortality” and that only emergency strategies can mitigate those gaps.

Nearly 133,000 people, or about 6% of the population, are classified as Phase 5, the highest stage of food insecurity. The report estimates the number of people classified as Phase 5 — the equivalent to famine levels of starvation — is expected to triple between November 2024 and April 2025, with the north and Rafah, on the southern border with Egypt, being the most affected.

Although there was a temporary surge in humanitarian aid being delivered between May and August 2024, September had the lowest volume of humanitarian supplies entering Gaza since last March.

“This sharp decline will profoundly limit food availability and the ability of families to feed themselves and access services in the next few months,” the IPC report said.

The report also warned that about 60,000 cases of acute malnutrition among children ages 6 months to under 5 years old are expected to occur between September 2024 and August 2025 without significant intervention. Of those cases, 12,000 are predicted to be severe acute malnutrition.

The Israeli government has denied that conditions causing malnutrition exist inside Gaza and has said it works with international organizations to ensure necessary aid crosses the border into Gaza from Israel.

Copyright © 2024, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.