Impact of the humanitarian crisis in Gaza on children’s health: Evidence and recommendations for mitigation
On 7th October 2023, Hamas attacked Israel, killing over 1100 Israeli civilians. This was followed by a war in Gaza and Israeli forces continuously bombed and launched military attacks on the Gaza Strip. Over 13,000 children have been killed and thousands more injured, many of whom are suffering fro...
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| Language: | English |
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Taylor & Francis Group
2025-12-01
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| Series: | Global Public Health |
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| Online Access: | https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/10.1080/17441692.2025.2495326 |
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| author | Beheshta Harghandiwal |
| author_facet | Beheshta Harghandiwal |
| author_sort | Beheshta Harghandiwal |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | On 7th October 2023, Hamas attacked Israel, killing over 1100 Israeli civilians. This was followed by a war in Gaza and Israeli forces continuously bombed and launched military attacks on the Gaza Strip. Over 13,000 children have been killed and thousands more injured, many of whom are suffering from disabling traumatic injuries. Given the recency of events and the unprecedented scale of the impact, this narrative review addresses the urgent need to synthesise the impact of the crisis on children’s health in Gaza. The review focuses on the impact of the war on healthcare, food insecurity, infectious diseases, children with disabilities and the psychological impact. Findings reveal that children in Gaza are facing life-threatening challenges affecting all aspects of their health. There are catastrophic levels of food insecurity with high rates of malnutrition. About 60% of WASH facilities have been destroyed and infectious diseases are widespread. Children with chronic medical conditions and a disability are especially vulnerable to the hostilities. The challenges of data collection during the war introduce uncertainty, making it difficult to fully understand the extent of harm. However, without urgent interventions, an entire generation of children are endangered and condemned to a future of ill health and suffering. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-d6a93f3ce8ed4021a174f468cd38b97f |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 1744-1692 1744-1706 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-12-01 |
| publisher | Taylor & Francis Group |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Global Public Health |
| spelling | doaj-art-d6a93f3ce8ed4021a174f468cd38b97f2025-08-20T02:18:39ZengTaylor & Francis GroupGlobal Public Health1744-16921744-17062025-12-0120110.1080/17441692.2025.2495326Impact of the humanitarian crisis in Gaza on children’s health: Evidence and recommendations for mitigationBeheshta Harghandiwal0Medical Sciences Division, University of Oxford, Oxford Medical School, Oxford, UKOn 7th October 2023, Hamas attacked Israel, killing over 1100 Israeli civilians. This was followed by a war in Gaza and Israeli forces continuously bombed and launched military attacks on the Gaza Strip. Over 13,000 children have been killed and thousands more injured, many of whom are suffering from disabling traumatic injuries. Given the recency of events and the unprecedented scale of the impact, this narrative review addresses the urgent need to synthesise the impact of the crisis on children’s health in Gaza. The review focuses on the impact of the war on healthcare, food insecurity, infectious diseases, children with disabilities and the psychological impact. Findings reveal that children in Gaza are facing life-threatening challenges affecting all aspects of their health. There are catastrophic levels of food insecurity with high rates of malnutrition. About 60% of WASH facilities have been destroyed and infectious diseases are widespread. Children with chronic medical conditions and a disability are especially vulnerable to the hostilities. The challenges of data collection during the war introduce uncertainty, making it difficult to fully understand the extent of harm. However, without urgent interventions, an entire generation of children are endangered and condemned to a future of ill health and suffering.https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/10.1080/17441692.2025.2495326Children’s healthhumanitarian crisismalnutritionpsychological harmGazaSDG 2: Zero hunger |
| spellingShingle | Beheshta Harghandiwal Impact of the humanitarian crisis in Gaza on children’s health: Evidence and recommendations for mitigation Global Public Health Children’s health humanitarian crisis malnutrition psychological harm Gaza SDG 2: Zero hunger |
| title | Impact of the humanitarian crisis in Gaza on children’s health: Evidence and recommendations for mitigation |
| title_full | Impact of the humanitarian crisis in Gaza on children’s health: Evidence and recommendations for mitigation |
| title_fullStr | Impact of the humanitarian crisis in Gaza on children’s health: Evidence and recommendations for mitigation |
| title_full_unstemmed | Impact of the humanitarian crisis in Gaza on children’s health: Evidence and recommendations for mitigation |
| title_short | Impact of the humanitarian crisis in Gaza on children’s health: Evidence and recommendations for mitigation |
| title_sort | impact of the humanitarian crisis in gaza on children s health evidence and recommendations for mitigation |
| topic | Children’s health humanitarian crisis malnutrition psychological harm Gaza SDG 2: Zero hunger |
| url | https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/10.1080/17441692.2025.2495326 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT beheshtaharghandiwal impactofthehumanitariancrisisingazaonchildrenshealthevidenceandrecommendationsformitigation |