DaysofPal- Doctors Without Borders revealed alarming indicators regarding the consequences of the malnutrition crisis in the Gaza Strip, stating that the Israeli blockade and restrictions on the entry of food and medicine have caused devastating effects on pregnant and breastfeeding women and newborns.
The organization reported rising rates of premature births, infant deaths, and miscarriages during periods of war and intensified siege.
In a new analysis of medical data published on Thursday, the organization said the food crisis created by the occupation has had catastrophic consequences for the most vulnerable groups in Gaza, particularly during periods of military escalation and the tightened blockade in mid-2025. Medical teams, it said, recorded unprecedented levels of health complications linked to malnutrition.
Premature Births and Infant Deaths
The organization explained that, in four health facilities it manages or supports between late 2024 and early 2026, it documented a significant increase in premature births and deaths among infants born to mothers who suffered from malnutrition during pregnancy. It also recorded high levels of miscarriage and a sharp rise in the number of malnourished children failing to complete treatment programs.
Doctors Without Borders linked these findings to the continuing Israeli blockade, the prevention of essential goods from entering Gaza, and the targeting of civilian and medical infrastructure. It said insecurity, forced displacement, restrictions on aid, and limited access to food and healthcare all contributed to the deterioration of conditions for mothers and newborns.
The organization’s emergency medical manager, Mercè Rocaspana, said the malnutrition crisis was “entirely man-made.” She explained that Gaza had not suffered from this phenomenon before the war but that the systematic restriction of aid and commercial goods for more than two years severely limited access to food and clean water.
She added that deteriorating living conditions and the collapse of healthcare services have left the most vulnerable groups, particularly pregnant women and children, at greater risk of malnutrition.
The report was based on an analysis of data collected from 200 women and newborns treated in neonatal intensive care units at Nasser Hospital and Al-Hilu Hospital between June 2025 and January 2026.
The results showed that 25% of the women were still malnourished at the time of delivery, and over half of the women experienced malnutrition during pregnancy.
The report stated that 90 percent of infants born to malnourished mothers were delivered prematurely, while 84 percent had low birth weights, rates far higher than those recorded among infants whose mothers did not suffer from malnutrition.
It also found that mortality rates among newborns of malnourished mothers were twice as high as among other infants.
Repeated Displacement and Interrupted Treatment
In another aspect of the crisis, the organization said repeated displacement and worsening insecurity prevented many families from adhering to nutritional treatment plans for their children.
Between October 2024 and December 2025, its teams admitted around 513 infants under six months old into therapeutic feeding programs at the Al-Mawasi and Al-Attar primary healthcare centers in Khan Younis.
Doctors Without Borders said that 91 percent of those infants were at risk of impaired growth and development. However, the recovery rate did not exceed 48 percent, while mortality reached 7 percent. Treatment interruption rates climbed to 32 percent because of repeated displacement and difficulties reaching healthcare centers.
The organization’s medical coordinator in Palestine, Marina Pomares, said declines in patient visits during certain periods coincided with worsening insecurity and disruptions in food distribution. She noted that many mothers requested food assistance even before their children were diagnosed with malnutrition, reflecting the scale of food insecurity across Gaza.
She added that families were forced to adopt harsh coping mechanisms to survive hunger, including prioritizing food distribution to men and children at the expense of pregnant and breastfeeding women.
The report noted that the organization had not documented cases of child malnutrition in Gaza before the war and that no therapeutic feeding units previously existed in the territory. However, from January 2024 through March 2026, Doctors Without Borders admitted nearly 4,950 children under the age of 15 into malnutrition treatment programs, 98 percent of whom were under five years old.
During the same period, 3,482 pregnant and breastfeeding women were enrolled in therapeutic feeding programs.
The report also included testimony from a 23-year-old Palestinian woman named Mona, who said her youngest child died at the age of five months because of severe malnutrition.
She explained that she herself suffered from malnutrition during pregnancy while living with her family in a partially destroyed home after her husband lost his source of income when his fishing boat was destroyed in an Israeli strike.
Food Distribution Crisis and Psychological Pressure
Doctors Without Borders also warned about the consequences of the reduction in food distribution points in Gaza following the collapse of the ceasefire reached in early 2025. It said the number of distribution points had fallen from around 400 to only four locations operated by what is known as the “Gaza Humanitarian Foundation.”
The organization’s head of emergency operations, José Mas, said food distribution points had taken on a “militarized and dangerous character,” further complicating access to basic food assistance.
He said the following months witnessed a sharp increase in patients arriving at health facilities suffering from malnutrition and injuries linked to violence near food distribution centers.
The report further stated that psychological pressure, constant fear of bombardment, and the loss of food sources also contributed to rising miscarriage rates among pregnant women under living conditions the organization described as “inhumane.”
Approximately 75% of Gaza’s population experienced severe food insecurity between October and November 2025, according to estimates from the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification. Famine was formally declared in the region in August of last year, marking the first such declaration in the Middle East.
Doctors Without Borders warned that the situation remains “extremely fragile” despite discussions of a ceasefire. It said its teams continue to receive growing numbers of patients suffering from malnutrition while residents endure severe shortages of food, water, medicine, and income.
The organization called on Israeli authorities, as the occupying power, to allow the immediate and unconditional entry of humanitarian aid and medical and food supplies into the Gaza Strip. It also urged allied countries, particularly the United States, to pressure for the delivery of aid and the restoration of minimum levels of health, nutrition, and dignity for Gaza’s population.
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