UN: 14,000 Babies in Gaza Will Die from Starvation in 24 Hours!

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Head of United Nations (UN) humanitarian affairs, Tom Fletcher, on Monday warned that 14,000 babies in Gaza could die on Wednesday, May 21, 2025, if they do not receive nutrition and urgent care.

Five aid trucks were allowed into Israel on Monday, he said. However, Fletcher described the situation as a 'disaster' and the current aid flow as 'a drop in the ocean.'

"This is not food that will be seized by Hamas," he told BBC as quoted by TIME. "We take the risk of looting, being hit by Israel's attacks. We will be hindered, we will face great risk, but I don't see a better idea than providing baby food, for the mothers who currently cannot feed their children themselves."

Fletcher's strong statement follows the statement of World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, who emphasized that 2 million Palestinians in Gaza are starving while 'tons of food are blocked at the border' by Israel.

Israel allowed a number of humanitarian trucks to enter the besieged enclave for the first time after an almost 3-month total blockade that caused starvation.

Entry of Aid into Gaza Not Yet Distributed

The UN said on Tuesday it has been given permission to send 'about 100' aid trucks to Gaza after an 11-week blockade. However, no humanitarian aid has been truly distributed in the war-torn enclave, according to the UN.

"Today, one of our teams waited for several hours for Israel's green light to access the Kerem Shalom area and take nutritional supplies. Unfortunately, they were unable to bring those supplies to our warehouse," UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric told reporters on Tuesday as quoted by Anadolu.

"So, to clarify, even though more supplies have entered Gaza, we have not been able to secure the arrival of these supplies to our warehouses and delivery points."

"Ultimately, about four trucks, not five, were allowed in yesterday. Today, we received several dozen trucks... But the bottom line is, logistics, security complexities, and the overall environment make this very, very difficult," Dujarric said.

He said the aid was being held at the loading dock due to a complicated process: "The goods have to pass through the gate from Israel to Gaza, to the area where the trucks have to be unloaded and reloaded, and then we have to get the permission from Israeli security forces to bring our people to retrieve those trucks."

Israel's 80-day blockade, which has imposed strict closures on crossings and the delivery of aid, has resulted in nearly 330 deaths from starvation and over 300 miscarriages amid what it described as a genocide campaign, the Gaza Media Office announced on Tuesday as quoted by Anadolu.

Gaza needs a minimum of 44,000 aid trucks per day to meet the minimum needs of its population, the statement said.

Detailing the number of deaths during the 80-day siege, the Office reported 58 deaths due to malnutrition, and 242 others due to food and medicine shortages, most of them among the elderly. Additionally, 26 kidney patients died due to lack of nutrition and proper medical care.Over 300 miscarriages were recorded, caused by a lack of essential nutrition needed to sustain pregnancy.

Regarding malnutrition, the Office highlighted that the deteriorating health of the population has led to a failed blood donor campaign, while hospitals are facing an acute shortage of blood units amid an increasing number of wounded patients requiring emergency surgery.

The Gaza Office urged the international community and the UN to act to reopen crossings and allow the entry of food, medicines, and fuel to save hundreds of thousands of civilians before it is too late.

Gaza needs 500 aid trucks and 50 fuel trucks for vital and medical facilities, it said.

Israel has systematically made 2.4 million Palestinians in Gaza starve by closing crossings and blocking the stockpiled aid at the border since March 2, leading to famine and causing many deaths.

Meanwhile, the military has intensified the genocide in Gaza, announcing a ground operation in the northern and southern parts of the enclave.

The military has conducted brutal attacks on Gaza since October 2023, killing nearly 53,600 Palestinians, most of whom are women and children.

Before the war began, an average of 500 aid trucks entered Gaza every day. This changed on October 7, 2023, when Hamas launched an attack on Israel, killing around 1,200 people and taking about 250 hostages. However, a former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant admitted in an interview that a number of Israeli civilians were killed due to their own military's murder under Directive Hannibal. This rule prohibits letting Israeli civilians be kidnapped alive by the enemy.

In response, Israel initiated a genocide in Gaza by imposing a total blockade on Gaza, immediately halting the entry of all goods, including humanitarian aid. The blockade marked the beginning of a prolonged crisis, with only a small fraction of the previous aid volume allowed to enter since then.

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