Starving for a solution: Gaza’s man-made malnutrition crisis

Israel’s manufactured malnutrition crisis in Gaza had a devastating impact on pregnant and breastfeeding women, newborns, and infants under six months old during periods of intense hostilities and siege such as mid-2025, according to an analysis of medical data released today by Médecins Sans Frontières / Doctors Without Borders (MSF). 

At four MSF-run and supported health facilities between late 2024 and early 2026, MSF teams recorded higher levels of prematurity and mortality among infants born to mothers affected by malnutrition during their pregnancy, high levels of miscarriage, and observed sharp increases in treatment defaulting among malnourished children.

MSF links these outcomes to Israel’s blockade of essential goods and attacks on civilian infrastructure, including medical facilities. Insecurity, displacement, restrictions on aid, and limited access to food and medical care have had devastating consequences for maternal and newborn health. MSF warns that the situation remains extremely fragile despite the so-called ceasefire and urges Israeli authorities to immediately allow the unhindered entry of vital assistance and supplies. 

Devastating impacts of malnutrition during pregnancy  

“The malnutrition crisis is entirely manufactured,” says Mercè Rocaspana, MSF medical referent for emergencies. "Before the war, malnutrition in Gaza was almost non-existent. For two-and-a-half years, the systematic blockade to humanitarian aid and commercial goods on top of insecurity have severely restricted access to food and clean water. Healthcare facilities have been forced out of service and living conditions have profoundly deteriorated. As a result, vulnerable groups of people are placed at heightened risk of malnutrition.” 

MSF analysed data collected from 201 mothers of newborns receiving treatment in the neonatal intensive care units (NICUs) at Al Nasser and Al Helou hospitals, in Khan Younis and Gaza City, between June 2025 and January 2026. More than half of the women were affected by malnutrition at some point during their pregnancy, and 25 per cent were still malnourished during delivery.  

Ninety per cent of the babies born to mothers affected by malnutrition were born prematurely, and 84 per cent had low birth weight - a much higher incidence than in babies born to mothers with no malnutrition when giving birth.

Neonatal mortality was twice as high among infants born to mothers affected by malnutrition compared with those born to mothers without malnutrition.

Displacement and insecurity prevent treatment  

Between October 2024 and December 2025 MSF teams admitted 513 infants under six months into outpatient therapeutic feeding programs at Al Mawasi and Al Attar primary health care facilities in Khan Younis. Of those admitted, 91 per cent were at risk of poor growth and development.  

By December, 200 infants were no longer in the program - only 48 per cent of those were cured, seven per cent died, seven per cent were referred to a program for older children, and a staggering 32 per cent defaulted, primarily related to insecurity and displacement.

“Reduced admissions in late July and early August 2025 coincided with a period of intensified insecurity and disruptions to food distributions,” says Marina Pomares, MSF’s medical coordinator for Palestine. “Most mothers requested nutrition support even when children were not yet identified with malnutrition, reflecting widespread food insecurity from Israel’s imposed blockade, which effectively prevented food from entering Gaza for months. Families adopted coping mechanisms, often prioritising men and children over mothers when distributing limited food.” 

A manufactured malnutrition crisis

Prior to the war, there were no dedicated therapeutic feeding units. MSF teams identified the first cases of child malnutrition in January 2024. Between then and February 2026, MSF admitted 4,176 children under 15 years old - 97 per cent under five - for acute malnutrition in ambulatory and inpatient programs. During the same period 3,336 pregnant and breastfeeding women were enrolled in ambulatory programs.

“My youngest son died at five months due to severe malnutrition,” says Mona, a 23-year-old woman treated by MSF. “I suffered malnutrition myself during pregnancy and dealt with diarrhea and weakness. I live in a partially destroyed house. My husband used to be a fisherman with a small boat, which the Israeli shelling destroyed. We have no steady income.”  

The January 2025 ceasefire ended in mid-March 2025. By late May 2025, food distribution points reduced from around 400 to just four under the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF). On top of this, the blockade on commercial food trucks drastically limited access to food. “The [food distribution] points were militarised and deadly, barely functioning, or open at the same time, further restricting access to much needed food assistance,” says José Mas, head of the MSF emergency unit.

In the months following, MSF-supported facilities experienced a sharp increase in patients seeking care due to violence perpetrated at food distribution points and malnutrition linked to the deprivation of food. Many women also reported experiencing extreme stress and anxiety related to the significant risks faced by male family members attempting to secure food at GHF sites and intense aerial bombardments and resulting displacement. MSF teams observed a high number of miscarriages during this period, with high stress identified as a contributing factor.

Unprecedented levels of malnutrition declared  

Between 16 October and 30 November 2025, around three quarters of the population in Gaza were estimated to be facing high levels of acute food insecurity, according to the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC), who had declared a famine in August - the first ever in the Middle East region.  

“Israel’s tactical restrictions on the entry of food, the militarisation of aid corridors and distribution sites, and the targeted attacks on Gaza’s essential infrastructure have created an environment in which hunger is deliberately used as a means of control over the population,” says José Mas, MSF head of emergencies.  

“While the current so-called ceasefire has seen some stability in the situation, it is still extremely fragile. Our teams continue to admit new patients for malnutrition as the people of Gaza are forced to endure deliberate undignified living conditions, and lack access to assistance, income, and basic resources. MSF calls on Israeli authorities, as an occupying power, – and allied states including the US - to facilitate adequate and sustained entry of vital assistance for people living in Gaza to restore respectable levels of health, nutrition, and dignity.”

In their own words: Testimonies from MSF patients and staff 

Mahmoud's story

I am originally from Rafah. I have been displaced in Khan Younis for two years. We face difficulties with water, food, drink, diapers, and milk for the child. There is no work. We are displaced in a tent - me, my wife, and this child. We discovered that he had malnutrition when he was two months old. We lack frozen goods and warm meals.  

When I need something, I go out and get what I can for my family. I borrow from my neighbours. Since the day we left Rafah, I have only received one carton of food and a sack of flour once. I cannot afford to buy food because it is so expensive. Today a young man like me cannot bring anything home for his children - cannot bring food or drink. Despite the ceasefire, life is still very difficult. During the famine, it was the worst period: we couldn't find anything, and my wife was pregnant. Every day we would eat lentils. There was no bread, no flour, nothing. We got through it; thank God it passed. Until now, my wife and son are still following up for malnutrition. 

Sahar’s Story 

I used to live in Al-Sharqiya, but now I am displaced in Khan Younis. I live in a tent with my children. We have been displaced for about a year now. We have suffered a lot during the war. It's very tiring for a pregnant woman. We rely on the charity kitchen. We eat lunch from it and save some for dinner. When I did the pregnancy tests, they also found out I had malnutrition. Living conditions in the tents are difficult in every way - fleas and insects have spread a lot, and there is sand everywhere.  

We rarely buy things from the supermarket, we mostly rely on canned goods, rice, lentils, and chickpeas when they are available. Throughout the week we try to manage to get lunch for our poor children every Friday, so we can bring them joy, but for all week long, almost everything is from charity kitchens. Honestly, the taste isn't great and it’s not fresh or natural. 

The last time I received aid was during Ramadan. When bread, flour, and rice ran out... and the quantities were very small, we left them just for the young children, and adults had only one meal. Now the situation is somewhat improving. There is rice and lentils... Other things like vegetables are expensive. We can't get them all the time. So sometimes we go without vegetables for months.

Dr Mohammed's story

I work as a paediatrician at Al-Attar clinic with MSF. I treat pregnant and breastfeeding women and children affected by malnutrition, skin diseases directly related to malnutrition, and complications such as gastrointestinal diseases, colds, and respiratory infections such as bronchitis and pneumonia.  

At the beginning [of the war] malnutrition was something vague - even unknown - to people. We were surprised by the appearance of the first symptoms and began assessing children to detect malnutrition. Many factors have led to this situation, but the main one is security: people were not safe and they were displaced time and again. They lost everything: houses, belongings, food. There was a period when the crossings to Gaza were closed, so food was not available. Fear, bombing, and displacement affected the mental health of Palestinian families and their nutrition.

In early 2024, we started detecting many malnutrition cases among the most vulnerable groups. At first, most patients were also suffering from chronic, immune, genetic, and nervous system diseases, or congenital disorders. Then we started to see patients who did not suffer from any other disease. This was a danger sign - any child, even if their health was normal, could develop malnutrition.

There was one child suffering from swelling all over his body - which indicates the highest degree of malnutrition. Three months earlier, during the period of severe famine, his parents had lost another child who suffered from the same symptoms, and they were fearful.  

Patients with malnutrition can improve as soon as they start treatment. After being discharged, we follow up with them to avoid a relapse.  

Despite the ceasefire, we still see people with malnutrition coming to our clinics.