Palestinian baby dies from cold in Gaza amid Israeli restrictions on aid

Detailed summary

The baby's father said he died of hypothermia overnight in their family's tent in southern Gaza.

A Palestinian infant has died from the cold in a tent sheltering his displaced family in southern Gaza, his father and a doctor said, as Israel continues to impose severe restrictions on winter supplies to the war-ravaged territory.

Nine-month-old Kinan Ahmed Raqiq “died from hypothermia” in Khan Younis, in the southern region of the enclave, a doctor who spoke on he condition of anonymity told the AFP news agency on Thursday.

Ahmed Raqiq, the baby’s father, told AFP that Kinan died after cold temperatures hit Gaza overnight.

“I woke up only to see his skin had turned blue so I rushed him to Nasser Hospital, but he had already died from hypothermia and frozen to death,” he said.

“I am in complete shock. I found myself holding my son wrapped in a burial shroud,” he said outside the hospital, dried tears on his face as he held his son wrapped in a white sheet.

Gaza’s Civil Defence spokesman, Mahmoud Basal, confirmed the infant’s death after exposure to extreme cold, Palestinian news network Al-Quds reported.

The death comes as the United Kingdom, Qatar and Jordan led a coalition of more than 50 countries and organisations calling on Israel to provide immediate entry of critical items for shelter, fuel, water, sanitation and health to Gaza.

With winter arriving, the group said, “far too many people in Gaza are still without adequate shelter, and risk exposure to hypothermia, respiratory infections, waterborne diseases and other preventable illnesses”.

The statement echoed recent criticism of Israel over its restrictions by the United States-led Board of Peace and United Nations humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher.

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