Pregnant women and newborns in Gaza are facing a catastrophe that UN agencies say is claiming lives every day. With severe malnutrition, relentless bombardment, and a collapsing health system, women are giving birth in unsafe, unsanitary conditions, while thousands of infants face slow death from hunger and disease. One in three pregnancies is now considered high-risk, and nearly half of pregnant and breastfeeding women are severely malnourished, leaving newborns dangerously underweight or in need of intensive care.

Humanitarian agencies warn that this is not a medical crisis alone, but a deliberate, man-made disaster. Hunger, disease, and fear are being used as weapons, with Israel’s blockade restricting baby formula, medical supplies, and the fuel needed to keep hospitals running. Gaza’s Ministry of Health reports that hunger has already killed 180 people, including 93 children, while 40,000 infants under one year old are at imminent risk.

Despite repeated calls for a ceasefire and unfettered aid access, Israel’s siege, backed by U.S. political and military support, continues. Rights advocates say the international community’s inaction is enabling a systematic policy of killing and starvation, turning childbirth in Gaza into a struggle for survival against impossible odds.