About 60,000 pregnant women in the Gaza Strip are facing malnutrition and dehydration due to Israel's conflict with the enclave, the Health Ministry reported Thursday, just ahead of International Women's Day on March 8.
The ministry emphasized that the women also lack adequate health care. Women constitute 49% of Gaza's population, with a significant portion of childbearing age. Around 5,000 women give birth monthly under harsh, unsafe and unhealthy conditions due to shelling and displacement.
On Feb. 19, the U.N. children's fund, UNICEF, issued a warning about the significant increase in malnutrition among children, pregnant women and lactating mothers in Gaza, highlighting the serious health threat posed by the ongoing war.
Israel's attacks and total siege have pushed Gaza's residents, particularly in the northern governorates, to the brink of famine. There are severe shortages of food, water, medicine and fuel, alongside a health crisis exacerbated by epidemics and the strain on medical services.
The Gaza Health Ministry, in a statement, called on the U.N. to immediately stop the Israeli aggression and genocide against Palestinian women and their families.
It also called on women's institutions around the world to stand by Palestinian women and mobilize efforts to demand an end to Israeli aggression.
The ministry urged international institutions to support the living, health, psychological and social needs of Palestinian women, especially in the Gaza Strip.
On the eve of International Women's Day, the ministry announced the deaths of 9,000 Palestinian women in the Gaza Strip since Oct. 7, 2023.
The Israeli army has been waging a devastating war on the Gaza Strip, resulting in tens of thousands of civilian casualties, an unprecedented humanitarian disaster and massive destruction of infrastructure and property, according to Palestinian and U.N. data. Israel appeared before the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in January on charges of genocide.
