Mon Dec 30 12:30:15 UTC 2024: ## Gaza’s Bitter Cold Claims Another Life Amidst Israeli Offensive

**GAZA CITY** – One-month-old Ali al-Batran perished Monday in Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital, succumbing to the freezing temperatures gripping the Gaza Strip. His death follows that of his twin brother, Jumaa, who died the previous day from hypothermia in a makeshift tent. The deaths bring the total number of infants who have died from the cold in the past week to six. This grim statistic underscores the devastating conditions facing Gazans displaced by ongoing Israeli attacks.

Tens of thousands of Gaza’s 2.3 million residents are now living in overcrowded and inadequately protected tents along the coast, exposed to relentless wind and rain. The situation is particularly dire in areas like al-Mawasi, near Khan Younis, where three of the six infants died. Gaza’s Government Media Office reported that seven people, including an adult healthcare worker, have died from the cold.

The humanitarian crisis is compounded by relentless Israeli military actions. Israeli forces have attacked hospitals, including al-Wafaa Hospital, where a Sunday bombing killed seven and critically injured others. The Israeli military claimed the hospital was a Hamas command center, but provided no evidence. Furthermore, hundreds of Palestinians, including medical staff from Kamal Adwan Hospital and its director, Dr. Hussam Abu Safia, have been detained. The WHO Director-General, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, has demanded Dr. Abu Safia’s immediate release, decrying hospitals as “battlegrounds” and calling for an end to attacks on healthcare facilities.

Al Jazeera reporters on the ground described the freezing conditions and the desperate situation facing displaced families lacking adequate shelter, warm clothing, and blankets. The Israeli military’s release of video footage purportedly showing the humane and targeted nature of Dr. Abu Safia’s arrest has been countered by eyewitness accounts detailing brutality and mistreatment.

The ongoing conflict has resulted in at least 45,541 Palestinian deaths and 108,338 injuries. The death toll in Israel from Hamas attacks on October 7 stands at over 1,100, with dozens taken hostage. The combined impact of relentless conflict, displacement, and now extreme cold, paints a devastating picture of the humanitarian catastrophe unfolding in Gaza.

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