Silent Death Sweeps Gaza’s Elderly

• CrossFireArabia
• May 11, 2025

Alongside the relentless toll of fatalities from continuous Israeli bombardment, a silent death is sweeping through Gaza’s elderly and children—largely unrecorded and undocumented. This is the result of deadly living conditions deliberately imposed by Israel to exhaust the population. At the forefront of these crimes are starvation, the infliction of extreme suffering, deprivation of medical care, and the imposition of a total blockade—all constituting acts of ongoing genocide for over 19 months.

Now entering its third consecutive month, the intensified siege has had devastating and long-term effects—disproportionately harming Gaza’s most vulnerable. Israel’s systematic policy seeks to destroy all means of survival and eliminate any path to staying alive. This deepens the humanitarian catastrophe, making it a central instrument in the execution of genocidal policy.

Over the past week, 14 elderly Palestinians were documented to have died across Gaza from complications related to hunger, malnutrition, and lack of medical care. These deaths are directly linked to Israel’s complete closure of border crossings and its prevention of humanitarian aid and essential goods from entering the Strip since 2 March.

[My father] recently suffered a severe health setback. Hunger and malnutrition had left his body extremely weak and frail, so we transferred him to Nasser Hospital. After examination, doctors found he was suffering from acute anaemia and a severe deficiency in proteins and minerals   

Jalal, son of Talib Al-Arja who died due to lack of food

The victims died in various areas of Gaza, where residents face acute shortages of food, clean water, and medicine. Famine is spreading, the health system has collapsed, and even the most basic medical care is unavailable—leaving vulnerable people, especially the elderly and those with chronic illnesses, to die in total isolation from the outside world.

The death of Musbah Abdul Raouf Abdul Ghafhour, 84, was documented in Khan Younis on Saturday. His family told Euro-Med Monitor that his condition deteriorated sharply after he was diagnosed with stomach cancer. He could not be referred for treatment outside Gaza due to the total Israeli blockade. With no treatment available inside Gaza and his health further deteriorating due to malnutrition and lack of suitable food, he eventually succumbed.

The death of Talib Sabbah Suleiman Al-Arja, 80, was recorded on Tuesday, 7 May. His son, Jalal, told Euro-Med Monitor: “After the war on Gaza began and the suffocating siege was imposed, my father suffered repeated health setbacks due to a lack of food. We lived in miserable conditions in Rafah, and when we were displaced to Khan Younis, the suffering worsened. We lacked even the most basic necessities. My father complained about the intense heat inside the tent during the day and the biting insects at night. As an elderly man, he could not endure the hunger or thirst. He would ask for cold drinking water during the day, but we couldn’t provide it. He would long for foods like chicken, fish, eggs, and fruit—but none were available.”

He added, “He recently suffered a severe health setback. Hunger and malnutrition had left his body extremely weak and frail, so we transferred him to Nasser Hospital. After examination, doctors found he was suffering from acute anaemia and a severe deficiency in proteins and minerals. He remained in the hospital for less than 30 hours. His body did not respond to the medications, supplements, or IV fluids administered—and, in the end, he passed away.”

The Euro-Med Monitor team reported that dozens of elderly patients have been arriving at hospitals, the vast majority diagnosed with acute malnutrition and anaemia. With no access to treatment for their chronic illnesses, many have been forced to rely on canned food as their main source of nutrition—causing their health to deteriorate dramatically, in some cases leading to death.

An increasing number of elderly people, children, and patients are now dying as a direct result of the collapsing healthcare, severe malnutrition, and hunger, amidst the systematic breakdown of Gaza’s healthcare system caused by the Israeli blockade. The lack of an effective mechanism within Gaza’s Ministry of Health to monitor such cases means they are often recorded as natural deaths, though in reality, they result directly from deliberate starvation policies and the destruction of the health system. These practices constitute a pattern of intentional killing, which is prohibited under international humanitarian law and international criminal law.

Such actions amount to some of the gravest crimes under the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, which classifies wilful killing — including causing death through starvation or denial of medical care — as a war crime and a crime against humanity, particularly when committed as part of a widespread or systematic attack targeting civilians. This is consistent with the pattern of assault being carried out by Israel against civilians in the Gaza Strip.

These actions also meet the legal criteria for the crime of genocide, whether through acts of killing, inflicting serious bodily or mental harm, or imposing living conditions intended to bring about the physical destruction of a protected group, in whole or in part. This crime has been ongoing for over 19 months, perpetrated by Israel against the civilian population of Gaza.

The humanitarian crisis in Gaza has reached catastrophic levels. Hunger is no longer confined to vulnerable or marginalised groups—it now affects all segments of society. There has been an almost total collapse of essential public services and basic requirements for survival, including access to food, healthcare, and shelter.

The unlawful Israeli blockade imposed on the Gaza Strip since the start of the genocide in October 2023—accompanied by systematic and arbitrary restrictions on humanitarian aid and the deliberate destruction of the healthcare system, particularly over the past seventy days—has caused catastrophic deterioration and led to irreversible conditions affecting the health and wellbeing of more than two million people in the territory.

The proposed Israeli-American mechanism for humanitarian aid in Gaza is nothing more than a new manoeuvre aimed at prolonging the illegal and comprehensive blockade. It repackages the crime of starvation in a misleading humanitarian guise, falsely legitimising its continued use as a weapon in the ongoing crime of genocide.

The Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Monitor has called on all states, individually and collectively, to fulfil their legal obligations and take urgent action to halt the genocide and lift the illegal blockade on Gaza. Immediate and concrete measures must be taken to protect Palestinian civilians—especially the elderly and children.

The international community must act swiftly to lift the unlawful Israeli blockade, as it remains the only viable path to halting the accelerating humanitarian collapse and ensuring the flow of aid into Gaza. Any delay in lifting the blockade will only exacerbate the already uncontainable catastrophe, leaving more than two million people hostage to hunger, disease, and thirst—deprived of the most basic conditions for a dignified life.

The international community must also impose economic, diplomatic, and military sanctions on Israel in response to its systematic and grave violations of international law. This includes banning weapons exports to Israel and halting arms purchases from it; suspending all forms of political, financial, and military support and cooperation; freezing the assets of officials involved in crimes against Palestinians or inciting such acts; and imposing travel bans on them. Moreover, trade privileges and bilateral agreements that grant Israel economic advantages, enabling it to commit crimes, must be suspended.

All states must also be held accountable for their complicity or involvement in supporting Israel’s crimes—chief among them the United States—and any nations providing Israel with any form of assistance linked to the perpetration of these crimes. This includes aid or contractual ties in the military, intelligence, political, legal, financial, media, or economic sectors, or any other domain contributing to the continuation of these violations.