A five-week-old infant and a four-year-old child have died of starvation in Gaza, according to hospital officials, as Israel’s blockade on aid and fuel continues.
Al-Shifa Hospital reported the death of the baby, while medical staff at Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital said four-year-old Razan Abu Zaher succumbed to complications from severe malnutrition.
Dr. Muhammad Abu Salmiya, the hospital’s director, told Al Jazeera that the infant, who was just 35 days old, died from malnutrition overnight. Another person also died of starvation at the hospital on the same night, he said.
Gaza’s Ministry of Health said that emergency rooms are overwhelmed, with a “mass influx” of starving patients. According to the ministry, some 17,000 children are now suffering from severe malnutrition.
“How much longer until a ceasefire is reached so that bombs stop falling on emaciated and dying children?”
In Gaza, time is running out for children caught up in the horrors of war.@UNRWA’s @JulietteTouma shares some of their stories.https://t.co/jIephLx6XQ
— United Nations (@UN) July 18, 2025
Al Jazeera reported that Israeli forces have continued to fire on Palestinians gathering at aid distribution points, many of which are organised under United States-backed operations. Some have described these sites as “death traps”.
Israeli settlers have also attacked a major water system in the occupied West Bank, temporarily cutting off supply to thousands of Palestinians, AFP reports.
Subhil Olayan, a water operator monitoring the Ein Samiyah spring from a hilltop station, said the attacks damaged pipelines and forced a temporary halt to pumping operations.
“There is no life without water, of course,” Olayan told AFP following the attack, which disrupted access to villages that rely on the spring as a main or backup source.
Read: Israel strikes Gaza Catholic church, killing three
The system of wells, pumps, and pipelines supplies water to around 110,000 people, according to the Palestinian company that manages the facility. Water scarcity is a chronic issue in the West Bank, and any disruption can have wide-reaching consequences.
Israeli settlers swim in the Ein Samiyah spring near the village of Kafr Malik, in the Israel-occupied West Bank, on July 15, 2025. — AFP
“The settlers came and the first thing they did was break the pipeline. And when the pipeline is broken, we automatically have to stop pumping,” Olayan said.
“The water just goes into the dirt, into the ground,” he added, noting that repair teams acted quickly to resume service.
Israeli forces killed at least six Palestinians and demolished several civilian homes in northern Gaza and Gaza City on Saturday, according to Al Jazeera reporters and Palestinian sources.
The deaths were reported in the early hours of the morning during ongoing Israeli military operations in Gaza City and areas to the north, local journalists said. Further details on the circumstances were not immediately available.
Read more: Israel kills 32 near two aid centres in Gaza
In a separate incident, the Israeli army carried out demolitions in the Shujayea neighbourhood, east of Gaza City, destroying a number of homes, Palestinian sources told Al Jazeera.
Israel’s war on Gaza
The Israeli army has launched a brutal offensive against Gaza since October 2023, killing at least 58,667 Palestinians, including 17,400 children. More than 139,974 people have been injured, and over 14,222 are missing and presumed dead.
Last November, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former Defence Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.
Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on the enclave. The proposed deal includes a pause in hostilities, increased humanitarian aid, and negotiations on the release of captives.
