More than 2,700 children under the age of five have been diagnosed with acute malnutrition in Gaza, and the number of children suffering from severe medical conditions has risen sharply since the February screening, according to Al Jazeera, the United Nations reports.
Of the nearly 47,000 Under-Fives screened for malnutrition in the second half of May, it was found that 5.8% (or 2,733 children) suffer from acute malnutrition.
The number of children with severe acute malnutrition requiring hospital admissions also increased by about twice in May, according to a report by the United Nations Humanitarian Coordination Agency (OCHA).
Data from the nutritional cluster cited by OCHA shows that more than 16,500 children under the age of 5 have been detected and have been treated for severe acute malnutrition in Gaza since January.
Despite the increasing number of children suffering from severe malnutrition and demanding hospitalization, “currently there are only four stabilization centres for the treatment of (severe acute malnutrition) with medical complications in the Gaza Strip,” the OCHA report states.
“The Stabilization Centres in North Gaza and Rafa have been forced to stop surgery and leave children in these areas without life-saving treatment,” he adds.