Palestinian child Abdullah Salah fights to feed family in Gaza amid famine

Abdullah Salah, 12, a displaced Palestinian child in the Jabalia refugee camp in northern Gaza, grapples with the hardships of life: hunger, thirst and hygiene deficiency.

At an age when Abdullah Salah should be enjoying his childhood, he finds himself compelled to secure food for his family.

Salah sits with a group of his friends in front of the shelter centre, cooking lentil soup inside a medium-sized pot usually insufficient for 10 people, but he will distribute it among 20 members of his family.

For over two hours, Salah has been cooking this soup, which has not yet been fully cooked because he is using tree leaves to ignite the fire.

This scanty soup barely satisfies the hunger of his family, given the absence of any other type of food, he added. So he wakes up early every morning to clean the tent and then immediately sets out to search for food to cook.

Famine is striking the residents of war-torn Gaza City due to the depletion of basic food supplies from four months of intensified Israeli attacks and blockade.

Lack of essential supplies

The UN had warned that 2.3 million people in the enclave are at risk of famine.

In mid-November, the UN Food and Agriculture Organization said all Gaza residents suffer from "food insecurity" due to the Israeli blockade since October 7.

Recently, residents of Gaza and the northern areas used animal fodder as a substitute for flour.

"There is no firewood, logs, gas, food, flour, there is nothing here," Salah lamented.

The child also said drinking water is usually unavailable, forcing him and his family to travel long distances to obtain water.

"We carry bottles filled with water for long distances until we reach our tent at the shelter centre," he added.

Health risks

Moreover, the lack of hygiene essentials has exacerbated the hardships faced by Salah and his family.

"Sewage water leaks into the shelter centres, onto the streets, worsening conditions," he remarked.

"Furthermore, during heavy rainfalls, the tent is susceptible to flooding and rainwater mixes with sewage water leading to health issues, particularly for children," he added.

Since the onset of the devastating war on Gaza on October 7, Israel has cut off supplies of water, food, medicine, electricity, and fuel to the residents.

The UN has repeatedly warned of the spread of diseases and epidemics due to the water crisis and the lack of hygiene supplies.

Call for ceasefire

Describing his life in the displacement centre as "exhausting," Salah appealed for a ceasefire, saying he believes it is the only refuge from famine and deteriorating health conditions.

He said a ceasefire would enable him and his family to return to their home and provide them with access to aid, food, water, and other life essentials.

Israel has launched a deadly offensive on Gaza following an October 7 attack by the Palestinian group Hamas, killing at least 27,365 Palestinians and injuring 66,630 others, while nearly 1, 200 Israelis are believed to have been killed in the Hamas attack.

The Israeli offensive has left 85 percent of Gaza’s population internally displaced amid acute shortages of food, clean water, and medicine, while 60 percent of the enclave’s infrastructure has been damaged or destroyed, according to the UN.