Six babies have died of cold after two weeks, say medics

At least six babies have died in the last two weeks in Gaza due to cold weather and lack of adequate shelter and heating, say Palestinian medical and health officers.

Doctors at the hospital for a friendly friends of friends in Gaza, to the north, said nine newborn babies suffered from cold injuries were admitted, five of whom died, in critical condition.

The family of a two -month -old girl also said she died because of the cold near the southern town of Han Eunice overnight.

The PFBS hospital has called for the emergency delivery of caravans and fuel to improve the conditions for approximately 945,000 displaced Palestinians living in tents and improvised shelters.

The Palestinian Armed Group Hamas has accused Israel of not authorizing tents, caravans and other supplies of shelters during the cessation of fire, which began five weeks ago. Israel denied this.

Most of the 2.1 million Gaza population was displaced repeatedly during the 16-month war between Israel and Hamas and almost 70% of the buildings in the territory were evaluated or destroyed.

The healthcare system also collapsed, with only 18 of the 35 hospitals being partially functional and the deficiency of basic medical equipment.

According to meteorological websites, the night temperature in the gas regularly drops below 10 ° C (50F) in the last two weeks.

He dropped to 3B (37F) on Monday night after PFBS medical director PFBS D -Said Salah warned in a video that three babies suffering from cold injuries, including hypothermia, had died during the same period.

He said the babies were only one or two days old and weighed between 1.7 kg and 2 kg (3.7-4.4 pounds).

On Tuesday, Salah and a pediatrician at D -R Sam Lyubad hospital reported that two more newborns had died.

“The last few weeks (we had) nine newborns at our hospital. And they came with the case that they call” cold injury “or hypothermia,” Dr. Lubad told Al Jazeera TV.

“Three babies survived and were successfully treated and dumped at home. There’s still a baby in our neonatal ICU in critical general condition.”

He added: “Of course, this condition is because of the cold weather and the lack of safe shelters, the lack of central heating and the lack of electricity in the Gaza Strip.”

Meanwhile, the head of the pediatric ward at the Nasser Hospital in Khan Innis told the Associated Press that he had received the body of a two -month -old girl who died of hypothermia on Tuesday.

A video published by a local journalist appeared to show that the girl was buried by her father and uncle, who said she was named Sham Youssef al -Shambari.

He said she was healthy and that her mother had found her “hard as a cold tree” when she tried to wake her up for a meal at the night in the tent of the family in the area of ​​Al Mavasi.

Dr. Munaer Al Bursh, CEO of Hamas Health Ministry in Gaza, said a total of 15 children had died in a statement because of the cold since the beginning of winter.

He also claims that Israel “has not been able to comply with humanitarian protocols, including the authorization of the entry of medical equipment, heating supplies, tents and mobile homes,” since the cessation of the fire on January 19 began.

Earlier, Hamas said Israel was obliged to allow about 300,000 tents and 60,000 caravans during the six -week first phase of the deal.

The Israeli military body said that Israel was “engaged and fulfilled the obligation to allow the entry of 4200 Humanitarian aid trucks a week” in Gaza, including those wearing tents and shelters.

“Based on the data available to us, hundreds of thousands of tents have entered the Gaza tape since the agreement entered into force,” he added.

It comes against the background of prolonged uncertainty whether the cessation of the fire will continue last Saturday when the first phase of the deal will expire.

On Sunday, Israel postponed the release of about 600 Palestinian prisoners and detained in exchange for 10 hostages who were handed over by Hamas, accusing the group of cynically using their hostages for propaganda purposes.

Hamas accused Israel of “screaming” the transaction and said that indirect conversations about more steps, including in the second phase of the transaction, were conditional for the release of prisoners.

The Israeli military launched a campaign to destroy Hamas in response to an unprecedented cross -border attack on October 7, 2023, which killed about 1,200 people and 251 were taken hostage.

Since then, at least 48 348 people have been killed in Gaza, according to the health ministry in the territory.