“I woke up in the morning and told my husband that the baby hadn’t stirred for a while. He uncovered her face and found her blue, biting her tongue, with blood coming out of her mouth,”
These are the words of Nariman al-Najmeh, a mother in Gaza whose newborn daughter Sila tragically succumbed to hypothermia at less than three weeks old. The family’s harrowing story is one of displacement, despair, and unimaginable loss amidst the backdrop of relentless conflict.
Nariman and her husband Mahmoud Fasih have faced unfathomable challenges, having been displaced over 10 times during the ongoing 14-month war. Their nomadic existence led them to settle in a tent on the beach in southern Gaza, where they endured not only the horrors of war but also the harsh realities of extreme weather conditions.
“The cold is bitter and harsh. All night, because of the cold, we huddle together, curling up next to each other,”
Mahmoud’s poignant words encapsulate the daily struggle for survival that families like his endure in Gaza. With inadequate shelter and limited resources, they fight against nature’s wrath as well as man-made conflicts that have torn their lives apart.
The humanitarian crisis exacerbated by war has left thousands of Palestinians displaced into overcrowded camps with insufficient infrastructure and sanitation. Al-Mawasi “humanitarian area,” where Sila’s family found themselves residing, grapples with flooding from both rainwater and sea waves while battling freezing temperatures that claim innocent lives like Sila’s.
“Despite telling civilians to head to [al-Mawasi], Israeli military strikes have repeatedly targeted this area during its campaign against armed groups in Gaza.”
Amidst these adversities lies a heart-wrenching truth – Sila was not a victim of direct violence but rather an indirect casualty of warfare-induced hardships. Her death mirrors those of six other newborns who succumbed to hypothermia within a brief span in Gaza – shedding light on the silent tragedies unfolding under cover of conflict.
Dr. Ahmad al-Farra’s revelation about Sila’s cause of death underscores how fragile life is for infants born into such harsh conditions. Babies like Sila lack developed mechanisms to regulate body temperature properly and are particularly susceptible to hypothermia in environments ill-equipped for their delicate needs.
Gaza’s medical professionals witness not only an increase in premature births due to stress but also mothers struggling with malnutrition hindering their ability to nourish their infants effectively. The scarcity of essential supplies like infant formula further compounds these challenges when aid deliveries face restrictions amid ongoing hostilities.
“Touch him with your hand; he’s frozen… What can I do? I see my children dying in front me.”
Yehia al-Batran’s anguished cry echoes across Gaza as he mourns his own son Jumaa’s tragic demise due to cold exposure at just 20 days old – another devastating loss among many facing families caught in this cycle of suffering.
As international voices decry these preventable deaths as indicators of worsening humanitarian crises gripping Gaza’s youngest inhabitants tightly within their grasp – it becomes evident that urgent intervention is needed before more innocent lives fade away into oblivion under such cruel circumstances.
In moments fraught with grief and desperation under skies filled with drones’ ominous hums echoing overhead – families like Nariman’s find solace fleeting as they bury their beloved children amidst sand dunes turned makeshift gravesites marking yet another chapter stained by loss and longing for peace unattainable.
Leave feedback about this