"Desperate for Survival: Gazans Risk Everything for Basic Food Access"**

The dire situation in Gaza sees individuals like Mohammed al-Qedra risking their lives to obtain food, highlighting a brutal reality in the face of a collapsing healthcare system and widespread malnutrition.**

In the war-torn region of Gaza, many residents grapple with poverty and hunger so severe that they are willing to risk their lives to secure basic food supplies. Mohammed al-Qedra, 33, was shot in both the hand and leg as he ventured out to an aid distribution center in search of flour for his family. "Hunger and the lack of everything makes us go there," he shared. Although keenly aware of the danger, he felt he had no choice; “The famine is bad for me and for everyone."

Mohammed is one of numerous patients treated at a makeshift hospital set up by the British charity UK-Med, responding to an overwhelming influx of individuals injured while fetching food from dangerous distribution points. The United Nations reports that over 1,000 Palestinians have been killed by the Israeli military in recent months while attempting to acquire food aid—shocking statistics underscoring an urgent humanitarian crisis. A significant portion of these fatalities has occurred near facilities run by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), which operates from Israeli military-controlled zones.

British paramedic Sam Sears noted the extent of the crisis, with the UK-Med hospital treating around 2,000 patients monthly, many suffering from severe injuries sustained during attempts to secure food. Among them was Dr. Aseel Horabi, a Palestinian medic who witnessed the carnage firsthand. She herself struggled with limited resources and shared chilling accounts of patients arriving with catastrophic injuries from gunfire. "I see the injured people coming to the hospital in big numbers. We sometimes receive up to 50 injured a day," she lamented, emphasizing the overwhelming pressure healthcare workers face amid pervasive famine.

The humanitarian situation further deteriorates as the World Health Organization indicates that one-quarter of Gaza's 2.1 million residents are living under famine-like conditions. Malnutrition has reached alarming levels, particularly affecting women and children; nearly 100,000 are suffering from severe acute malnutrition. In recent days alone, at least 45 people reportedly succumbed to malnutrition, as the healthcare system struggles to cope with the staggering crisis.

The response from Israeli officials has been one of denial, asserting that no famine is caused by Israel, blaming Hamas instead for the shortages. They contend that a significant amount of aid has entered Gaza, yet UN agencies cite a lack of proper coordination as a bottleneck for aiding the population effectively. The reality remains grim for those in Gaza, where lives are lost in the ongoing struggle for sustenance and safety amidst a devastating blockade that has forced residents into a suffocating state of desperation.