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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Comment
Devi Sridhar

It’s not just bullets and bombs. I have never seen health organisations as worried as they are about disease in Gaza

Temporary shelters for displaced people in Rafah, Gaza, on 8 December 2023.
‘These aren’t anywhere near what we would consider safe public health zones.’ Temporary shelters for displaced people in Rafah, Gaza, on 8 December 2023. Photograph: Xinhua/Shutterstock

The Israel-Gaza war has set several world records. It’s the deadliest conflict for journalists in 30 years. It has caused the largest single loss of life for United Nations staff in the history of the organisation. It is set to have the worst ever total number of attacks on healthcare facilities and their personnel, and has devastated schools, with 51% of education facilities damaged. International rules such as the Geneva conventions have not been respected: hospitals and ambulances have been targeted, medical relief organisations such as Doctors Without Borders (MSF) and Save the Children are under attack, and have lost staff members.

The Israel-Gaza war is also deadly for children, reportedly the deadliest conflict for children in recent times: roughly 160 children were being killed a day last month according to the World Health Organization. Compare this with three a day in the recent conflict in Syria, two a day in Afghanistan, and 0.7 a day in Ukraine. The total number of children killed is already more than 5,300 says Unicef, the United Nations Children’s Fund. They didn’t choose to be born there, and are innocent, but are bearing the brunt of these attacks.

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