Viewer Discretion: This article includes graphic descriptions, ideas of child hunger and starvation, and photos depicting a starving and hungry child before and after the genocide began.

The Continuity of Violence

This year, October 7th, 2025,  marks the 2 year recurrence of the mass genocide  in Gaza, only now, the person in office is Donald Trump. On October 10th, 2025, a ceasefire was agreed upon by Israel's military government, which Trump noted, the ceasefire would, almost completely without a doubt, hold steady. Despite this claim, it was a temporary drawback of the tragic violence being inflicted upon Gaza. 

Palestinian Nakba

It all started in 1948. There was massive displacement and dispossession of Palestinians from their homeland during and after the 1948 Palestine-Israeli War. This displacement was represented and referred to as the Nabka. Many Palestinians and refugees were expelled and taken from their homes and they were placed into neighboring countries and other parts of Palestine, such as The Gaza strip, The West Bank, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, Egypt, and Iraq. Today, many of these refugees remain in these places and still haven’t returned home. The United Nations has numbered around 6 million Palestinian refugees that haven’t returned home, and they have recognized 58 refugee camps in Lebanon, Jordan, Syria, West Bank, and Gaza Strip. 

The conflict because of the Nakba resulted in many other factors as well, like, loss of life & property, creation of a refugee crisis, psychological trauma, and the ongoing dispossession of Palestinians and refugees. People lost their homes, families, and lives. The displacement of Palestinians and refugees was a huge catastrophe during this time, and “between 750,000 and one million Palestinians expelled from their homeland and made refugees by Zionist militias and the new Israeli army during Israel’s establishment, amounting to approximately 75% of all Palestinians” (Institute for Middle East Understanding).

The ceasefire was claimed to be holding, but on Tuesday, October 14th, Israel was accused of breaking the truce, as a minimum of 6 Palestinians were killed because they had “approached the line of control in Gaza” and were “considered a threat” in their own historical homeland (Arraf). The breaking of the truce was not received well by many communities, and struck fear into the recovering families, soldiers, and onlookers. In post exchanges between Israel and Gaza, there were about 1700 Gazans released from Israeli confinement. While 20 living soldiers and about 24 bodies being held hostage by Hamas were released and given to Israel (Arraf). 

On Tuesday, October 14th, 2025, Trump remarked at the White House “we will disarm them” (Kelly), referring to Hamas, if they refuse to disarm.  However, Hamas has not given up their arms and Israel has been denying necessary medical and food aid for innocent Gazans despite the clear famine within Gaza. According to the World Health Organization, “15,600 patients need urgent medical evacuation in Gaza and noted it needed to scale up treatment for malnutrition” (Arraf). 

The United States is not innocent, as the United States has, “according to a report by the Watson Institute for International and Public Affairs, as of late 2025 the U.S. has provided about US $21.7 billion in military aid to Israel since the genocide began” (“U.S. Military Aid and Arms Transfers to Israel, October 2023 – September 2025”). Not only this, but “from 1951 to present day, the U.S. has provided more than  US $339 billion in “foreign assistance” (economic + military aid, inflation-adjusted) to Israel (USAFacts).

Gaza has been through years of violence, hunger, and mourning, but despite these struggles, the community remained strong, resilient, and fought for what they could. However, Gaza has been  under constant attack; since the ceasefire took effect one month ago, Israeli attacks have killed at least 242 Palestinians and injured 622. 

The Stories of Adults in Gaza 

Muhammad Abu ‘Aytah, a man of 50 years old and a father of 5, has a gruesome story. Muhammad Abu ‘Aytah notes that before the war, he lived with his wife, and his five children. Muhammad emphasizes the cruelty of the bombings, and how his family was too scared to leave their home. Then, on December 3rd, 2023, fighter jets from the Israeli military bombed their home, and the house collapsed on the family. His entire family survived,  a miracle, but two of his children had their legs cut off due to the collision.

Muhammad experienced mourning of his two children whose wellbeing was stripped from them in a matter of seconds, Rima, 22, and Hassan, 20. His children were rushed to the nearest hospital, which was crowded. The hospital rooms were near capacity and blood was everywhere. The best the doctors could do at the time was apply some form of bandages to the wounds and dress them with iodine.

Muhammad and his family stayed in the hospital for about a week, and during this time his children suffered from severe blood loss and intense pain. His  children were scheduled for surgery, but everyone in the hospital was forced to evacuate, so the surgery was cancelled. The family relocated to a no longer in use-school, where they stayed for 7 months with many other families crowded within. Then, the family was asked to evacuate from the area, and many families left the school, but Hassan and Rima, Muhammad’s two injured children could not leave, so they stayed, hoping that if the military came, they would be unharmed. A day after Muhammad, his wife, and his three other children fled the school, they received a call from people who said that Hassan and Rima were safe and had been carried by strangers to a nearby facility that was considered safe for the time being. 

The family was then asked to evacuate, which  led the family to migrate to Muhammad’s father-in-law’s house. This house is where they stayed for a little over a week. All was well until the family was surrounded by the military, and after two weeks, the family was ordered to leave by soldiers, and as the family was leaving, Rima was fired at by a missile and was severely injured. Rima’s fingers had been blown off and her hand was only provided with iodine to disinfect and bandage. Since then, Rima has undergone many surgeries, and the family is still stricken with fear, hunger, and grief. 

Muhammad is just one of thousands of people who have had to deal with extreme exhaustion from the intense violence and hunger stricken within the Gaza territory.

The Stories of Adolescents in Gaza

There are many untold stories of survivors from this genocide that haven’t been heard, some including the story of a young fourteen year old boy named Zain Abbas. Before the genocide, Zain lived in a four story home in the northern part of a Gaza City neighborhood of al-Saftawi. He was a successful swimmer, and trained three times a week at his local swimming club. Until October 2023, he lived an amazing and happy life, but as soon as the genocide hit Gaza, his life completely changed. 

Zain and the rest of his family were all forced to move to the western area of Khan Yunis. Every day, Zain wakes up in a tent that is shared with the rest of his family. Each morning, he has to carry empty water jugs on his shoulders and walk  long distances in order to fill them. He waits  long hours in the scorching hot sun just to be able to get water for his family (Shnino). He says that, “Sometimes I have to fight my way to the front, because if the barrel runs dry before it’s my turn, my family won’t have water.” A lot of kids in Gaza are facing a harsh reality defined by hunger, displacement, and survival.

Zain’s mental health has taken a major toll on him during the war. His mom says that, “He was always a bright, happy boy” she says. “Now, he’s angry, frustrated. He asks me, ‘Why are we living? What’s the point?” (Nourdine Shnino). The teen’s struggles are mainly because Zain's father, Jameel disappeared. Jameel was supposed to be retrieving the family’s belongings but he hasn’t returned. No one knows where he is and if he is alive. His disappearance has left the whole family in constant worry. Without his father, Zain was forced to grow up faster; being the only boy left in the family, taking care of himself and the family during this incredibly hard time. Zain’s message to the world is simple, “Help us end this war. Help us rebuild Gaza. Give children like me a chance to live again.”

The Stories of Children in Gaza 

Children haven’t been spared in the war on Gaza. Children have no part in starting the wars in Gaza, but are victims of their violence. They are living through one of the most urgent humanitarian crises in Gaza. Children in Gaza are facing extreme violence, displacement, starvation, and psychological trauma. There is a 10 year old girl in Gaza, named Rasha, she has sadly passed away, killed by an Israeli bomb, but before she died, she decided to write a will. 

Rasha writes, “My will, if I become a martyr or pass away: please do not cry for me, because your tears cause me pain. I hope my clothes will be given to those in need. My accessories should be shared between Rahaf, Sara, Judy, Lana, and Batool. My bead kits should go to Ahmed and Rahaf. My monthly allowance, 50 shekels, 25 to Rahaf and 25 to Ahmed. My stories and notebooks to Rahaf. My toys to Batool. And please, do not yell at my brother Ahmed, please follow these wishes.” 

According to Save the Children, “Israel has killed more than 16,700 children in Gaza since October 7, 2023, and at least 17,000 children have lost their parents. In January 2024, [ it was estimated that ] that 10 children were losing a limb every day” (Alnabi). It is truly upsetting that children have to live in a famine and war zone every single day. More studies show that, “Over 50,000 children in Gaza have been reported as either killed or injured since October 2023, according to UNICEF.”  So many children in Gaza are dying and this loss is absolutely devastating. They don’t get to grow up and live long lives. Their childhoods should be focused around school, playgrounds, and playing. Not fear, danger, death, and trauma. 

Ahmed, her older brother, was only 11 years old when he also passed away because of an Israeli bomb. Rasha and Ahmed were only a year apart from each other, they were supposed to grow up and live long lives, and not die at the ages of 10 and 11. Rasha and Ahmed both wanted to get  PHDs and have successful jobs just like their mother did. Rasha and Ahmed spent an entire night in their shrouds, laying side by side on the hospital floor, next to each other. The next morning, their family carried them to the cemetery and laid them to rest in a single grave, side by side forever. 

Education in Gaza

Education in Gaza has been nearly completely cut off, and this is due to the destruction of educational infrastructure, displacements of students & teachers, and the ongoing violence. 

According to The Guardian, 745,000 children and university-age students have been out of school for two years, as “more than 90 percent of school buildings, 79 percent of higher education campuses, and 60 percent of vocational training centres have been damaged or destroyed.” Instead of being used for learning, schools are completely destroyed, and some have been transformed into shelters for displaced Palestinians. The United Nations have also used these shelters as “temporary learning spaces” to give basic lessons for children. But still, most school-age children in these shelters continue to be stripped of their access to education. Destruction of schools,  impacts a generation of children's learning.   Yet, the children of Gaza persist, surviving for each other and a future beyond the terror.

A lot of children in Gaza have expressed that going back to school is one of their top priorities. A father currently in Gaza says, “A few days ago, one of my children told me, “I want to eat healthy food. I really want to go to school and live my old, normal life. And I want to play” (Shnino). When children aren’t in school for a long period of time, there is an even greater chance they’ll never go back to school. 

Hunger and Famine Strikes

In August, 2025, famine was declared in Gaza by the many large organizations, and they brought attention to the need for a ceasefire.. 

 According to the World Health Organization, “more than one in three people (39 percent) indicated they were going days at a time without eating, and adults regularly skip meals to feed their children” (World Health Organization). The lack of food and inconsistent influx of resources is causing children and adults to suffer from malnutrition. 

A 31 year old mother, Israa Abu Halib, noted on August 4th, 2025 how her and her family had been displaced due to the beginning of the war, and relocated to stay and live inside of a school, where they stayed for 1.5 weeks. They stayed with about 11 other families. After about 10 days, the family moved to a chicken farm, where the conditions were harsh and unfit for human inhabitants. Israa emphasized how her and her family were dirty from living practically outside, and how the winter and summer seasons were near unbearable. 

Israa became pregnant around June 2024, which was primarily due to her lack of access to birth control  and other contraceptives. She claimed her pregnancy was “very difficult”  and the primary factor was the lack of “food and no vitamins” (B'Tselem). Later on, when the ceasefire had been declared at the beginning of 2025, the family returned to their home, where they saw it had been demolished by the bombings and airstrikes done by the Israeli military. In February of 2025, Israa had given birth to her daughter, Zeinab, who was born healthy in all forms. Despite the healthy pregnancy and birth, the access to food was becoming a growing issue, which prevented Israa from properly breastfeeding her child. 

In April of 2025, Zeinab became sick, with symptoms of vomiting and diarrhea, so Zeinab was given treatment for many days at a time. In and out of the hospital she went, but on May 16th, 2025, Israa and her community had been bombed, so they had no choice but to evacuate in hopes of safety. Post-evacuation, Israa and her husband continued to bring Zeinab to the hospital, where they recommended her to have bowel surgery. After the operation, the Israeli Military had launched and hit many airstrikes in places surrounding the hospital. The family had no choice but to flee, taking Zeinab, right out of surgery, to a hopefully safer location. 

Zeinab was admitted to the ICU for a few days, where doctors released her, not knowing what her condition was or how to help her. Zeinab passed away 5 days after being released, and before she died, she weighed roughly two kilograms, below half of her previous weight before becoming sick.

Zeinab is just one of thousands of horrific and gruesome stories of the lives of children across the Gaza territory. Thousands of children fight for food and nutrition every day. The children who are malnourished have little to no resources to recover, even in hospitals. The Israeli military takes advantage of the vulnerability of hospitals and has bombed almost “94% of hospitals in Gaza ”(Rubenstein and Sidhwa). 

Works Cited

Arraf, Jane. “A Fragile Gaza Ceasefire Is Tested after Israel and Hamas Swap 

Detainees and Hostages.” NPR, 14 Oct. 2025, www.npr.org/2025/10/14/nx-s1-5574057/israel-hamas-ceasefire-gaza. 

Ashing, Inger , et al. “Education under Attack in Gaza, with Nearly 90% of School 

Buildings Damaged or Destroyed.” Save the Children International, 2024, www.savethechildren.net/blog/education-under-attack-gaza-nearly-90-school-buildings-damaged-or-destroyed. 

“Hospital Attacks in Gaza and Israel: What Counts as a War Crime? | Think Global  Health.” Think Global Health, July 2025, www.thinkglobalhealth.org/article/hospital-attacks-gaza-and-israel-what-counts-war-crime. 

Kelly, Laura. “Hamas Reasserts Power in Gaza with Retribution Campaign, 

Clouding Peace Deal’s Prospects.” The Hill, 14 Oct. 2025, thehill.com/policy/international/5555653-gaza-ceasefire-hamas-control

Nourdine Shnino. “Once a Swimmer, Now a Survivor: A Teenager’s Life in  War-Torn Gaza.” Progressive.org, 10 Oct. 2025, progressive.org/latest/once-a-swimmer-now-a-survivor-a-teenagers-life-in-war-torn-gaza-shnino-20251010/ . Accessed 20 Oct. 2025.

“Quick Facts: The Palestinian Nakba (Catastrophe).” The Institute for Middle East 

Understanding (IMEU), 2023, imeu.org/resources/resources/quick-facts-the-palestinian-nakba-catastrophe/142?ref=hir.harvard.edu. 

Stockwell, Billy, et al. “October 11, 2025 - Israel-Hamas War.” CNN, 11 Oct. 2025, 

www.cnn.com/world/live-news/israel-hamas-gaza-ceasefire-hostages-10-11-25.m 

“The Palestinian Nakba: What Happened in 1948 and Why It Still Matters.” 

Institute for Palestine Studies, www.palestine-studies.org/en/node/1651256. 

“The Stories of Gaza’s Victims from Israel’s Year of Killing.” Al Jazeera, 2024, 

www.aljazeera.com/video/newsfeed/2024/10/6/the-stories-of-gazas-victims-from-israels-year-of-killing . Accessed 20 Oct. 2025.

“U.S. Military Aid and Arms Transfers to Israel, October 2023 – September 2025.” 

Costs of War | Brown University, 2023, costsofwar.watson.brown.edu/paper/AidToIsrael?utm_source=chatgpt.com.USA 

USA FACTS “How Much Aid Does the US Give to Israel?” USA Facts, 20 May 2021, 

usafacts.org/articles/how-much-military-aid-does-the-us-give-to-israel/?utm_source=chatgpt.com) . Accessed 1 Dec. 2025.

World Health Organization. “Famine Confirmed for First Time in Gaza.” Who.int, 

World Health Organization: WHO, 22 Aug. 2025, www.who.int/news/item/22-08-2025-famine-confirmed-for-first-time-in-gaza.