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UNRWA chief warns many malnourished children will die in Gaza City operation
Published by Global Banking and Finance Review
Posted on August 21, 2025
2 min readLast updated: January 22, 2026
Global Banking and Finance Review
Company
Published by Global Banking and Finance Review
Posted on August 21, 2025
2 min readLast updated: January 22, 2026
UNRWA warns that child malnutrition in Gaza is worsening due to military operations. Immediate aid is crucial to prevent fatalities.
GENEVA (Reuters) -The head of the U.N. Palestinian refugee agency on Thursday voiced concern that children suffering from malnutrition in Gaza will die if emergency provisions are not immediately put in place during Israel's Gaza City military operation.
UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini said that its data showed a six-fold increase in the number of children suffering from malnutrition in Gaza City since March.
"We have a population that is extremely weak that will be confronted with a new major military operation," he told a Geneva press club meeting. "Many will simply not have the strength to undergo a new displacement."
"Many of them will not survive," he said of the children, addressing the audience in French. "It is a manufactured and fabricated famine. It is deliberate. Food has been used as an instrument of war," he said.
In May, a global hunger monitor said that half a million people in the Gaza Strip faced starvation but stopped short of using the term famine.
Israel's military agency that coordinates aid, COGAT, has previously said it invests considerable efforts to ensure aid reaches Gaza and has denied restricting supplies.
(Reporting by Emma FargeEditing by Ludwig Burger and Rachel More)
Philippe Lazzarini reported a six-fold increase in malnutrition among children in Gaza City since March, expressing concern that many will not survive due to the ongoing military operations.
UNRWA has indicated that the population in Gaza is extremely weak, with many children suffering from malnutrition and at risk of death without immediate emergency provisions.
Israel's military agency, COGAT, has stated that it invests considerable efforts to ensure aid reaches Gaza and has denied any restrictions on supplies.
In May, a global hunger monitor indicated that half a million people in the Gaza Strip faced starvation but refrained from labeling the situation as famine.
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