Israel’s relentless aerial bombardment and ground military offence across Gaza and other occupied Palestinian territories have resulted in the tragic deaths of at least 12,316 women since October 2023.
The staggering revelation was made by the media office in the Gaza Strip on the International Women’s Day, Saturday, March 8, highlighting the impact of the ongoing conflict on women and children, who have borne the brunt of the violence.
Citing government data, the officials revealed that Israeli bombs have also left at least 2,000 women and girls with permanent disabilities from amputations and 162 with infectious diseases. Additionally, at least 17,000 mothers lost their children, while more than 50,000 pregnant women lost their unborn babies.
“Women’s Day coincides with the continuation of the Israeli siege and the prevention of aid as women live in catastrophic humanitarian conditions and suffer from starvation and thirst,” said Maarouf, quoted by Aljazeera English.
The war, which escalated following the events of October 7, 2023, has resulted in the deaths of 43,469 Palestinians and injuries of 102,561, according to the enclave’s Ministry of Health. The majority of verified fatalities are children aged 5-9, 10-14, and babies and children aged 0-4 years old.
70 percent victims are women, children, says UN
In November 2024, the United Nation Human Rights Office said that close to 70 percent of those killed in the ongoing war in the Gaza Strip were women and children, describing it as a systematic violation of the fundamental principles of international humanitarian law. The office released a 32-page report of detailed analysis of violations for the six months from November 2023 to April 2024.
Two mothers killed in Gaza every hour
According to the report “Gender Alert: The Gendered Impact of the Crisis in Gaza” issued by UN Women on January last year, at least 24,620 Palestinians have been killed in war-torn Gaza, about 16,000 of whom were women and children, including infants.
“Gaza is fundamentally a protection crisis for women. Out of the 1.9 million people displaced, close to one million are women and girls seeking refuge in precarious sheltering conditions, yet nowhere and no one is safe in Gaza”, the report read.
The reports suggest that the impossible decisions regarding whether to evacuate, how and when to do so, and where to go are entrenched with gender differentiated fears and experiences, as gendered risks, including attacks and harassment, emerge along displacement routes.
At least 3,000 women have become widows, says UN
UN Women estimates that at least 3,000 women may have become widows and heads of households in urgent need of protection and food assistance, and at least 10,000 children may have lost their fathers. In this context, more women fear that families will resort to desperate coping mechanisms, including early marriage.
Pregnant Gaza woman unable to meet nutrition needs, says UNICEF
In January 2024, the United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) presented a report highlighting that most of the children and pregnant women in the Gaza Strip are not able to meet their basic nutrition needs.
A UNICEF survey team found that 90 percent of children under age two eat fewer food groups daily, mainly bread or milk. A quarter of pregnant women were having only one meal per day.
In December 2023, four pregnant women who were carrying white flags in an attempt to get to the hospital were shot down and run over by Israeli bulldozers in Gaza
UN officials said that Israel has been conducting extended checks on the aid vehicles at Rafah crossings and that this, along with heavy shelling, has led to delays in the supply of the aid materials.
300 percent increase in miscarriages
The miscarriage rate among women in the Gaza Strip has increased by 300 percent since the beginning of the Israel-Hamas war on October 7.
Nour Beydoun, CARE regional adviser on protection and gender in emergencies, told US-based website Jezbel, that miscarriages in Gaza are increasing due to inadequate food and nutrition for pregnant women.
“All pregnant women are now at severe risk of delivering in unsafe conditions and being put in situations where they are giving birth in cars, tents, and shelters,” Ammal Awadallah, the executive director of the Palestinian Family Planning & Protection Association, told Jezebel.
“The women are dismissed within a few hours after giving birth, due to the overcrowded facilities and extremely limited resources,” she added.
Gaza women deliver babies without anaesthesia
Women in war-torn areas have delivered babies without the use of anaesthesia. Additionally, most women were forced to use clothes as sanitary pads due to a lack of basic amenities.
The reports revealed that the Israeli occupation forces have targeted 162 health facilities, 131 ambulances, 187 shelters, and 456 schools and universities in the Gaza Strip. Many doctors have been killed in airstrikes, some are unable to work due to constant threats.
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