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Skin Diseases Afflict Gaza's Children as War Drags on Without End

Wateen al-Adasi is cared for at the Kamal Adwan Hospital in Beit Lahiya, northern Gaza Strip. The baby girl developed a skin condition due to malnutrition. )Omar Al-Qattaa/AFP- 3 Jul 2024)
Wateen al-Adasi is cared for at the Kamal Adwan Hospital in Beit Lahiya, northern Gaza Strip. The baby girl developed a skin condition due to malnutrition. )Omar Al-Qattaa/AFP- 3 Jul 2024)
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Skin Diseases Afflict Gaza's Children as War Drags on Without End

Wateen al-Adasi is cared for at the Kamal Adwan Hospital in Beit Lahiya, northern Gaza Strip. The baby girl developed a skin condition due to malnutrition. )Omar Al-Qattaa/AFP- 3 Jul 2024)
Wateen al-Adasi is cared for at the Kamal Adwan Hospital in Beit Lahiya, northern Gaza Strip. The baby girl developed a skin condition due to malnutrition. )Omar Al-Qattaa/AFP- 3 Jul 2024)

Like thousands of Gaza children, Yasmine Al-Shanbari, 3, is not only suffering from the upheaval of war all around them. She is ravaged by skin disease and no relief is in sight, with medicine scarce and few hospitals functioning in the Israeli-besieged enclave.

The 10-month-old war between Israel and Palestinian militant group Hamas has left the Gaza Strip with no clean running water, a shortage of aid and medicine and raw sewage everywhere, giving rise to skin diseases and other afflictions.

Red scratchy patches have spread all over Yasmine's face and her father feels helpless as she sits in his lap in a burnt-out, crowded school where they have taken shelter in the Jabalia urban refugee camp in north Gaza, Reuters reported.

Tiny little insects were visibly flitting around her face, while piles of garbage rotted in the high summer heat outside.

"The disease she has on her face has been there for almost 10 days now and hasn't gone away," said her father, Ahmed Al-Shanbari. "We did not leave out any medicine to give to her, hoping it will clear up from her face."

The death toll continues to climb in Gaza, with almost 40,000 Palestinians killed, according to Gaza authorities.

Skin diseases are not the only illnesses that are creeping into one of the most densely populated places on earth.

"Yesterday, we were talking about hepatitis, and today we are talking about contagious skin diseases. Every day there are new diseases spreading among children," said Doctor Wissam al-Sakani, spokesman for Kamal Adwan Hospital.

The World Health Organization (WHO) has sounded the alarm that Hepatitis A and polio are also spreading among children.

"UN agencies warned of the high risk of the further spread of infectious diseases in Gaza, amid chronic water scarcity and no way to adequately manage waste and sewage," it said in a report earlier this month.

"The waste management system in Gaza has collapsed. Piles of trash are accumulating in the scorching summer heat. Sewage discharges on the streets while people queue for hours just to go to the toilets."

Israel denies responsibility for delays in getting urgent humanitarian aid into Gaza, says the UN and others are responsible for its distribution once inside the enclave.

Ammar al-Mashharawi, a 2-year-old toddler, also has a fiery red rash all over his face and body in Kamal Adwan Hospital, which was struck by Israeli missiles in May.

"Look at the child, his whole body is like this. We have been to more than one hospital to find medicine for him," said Ammar's father Ahmed as he held his wailing son while medical staff checked him.

"We adults manage somehow, but the children, God help them, have no food or medicine. The situation is indescribable," Ahmed added.

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Displaced Southern Lebanese Fear Second Relocation: Struggling Far from Home

A building destroyed by Israeli bombing in the border town of Khiam (EPA)
A building destroyed by Israeli bombing in the border town of Khiam (EPA)
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Displaced Southern Lebanese Fear Second Relocation: Struggling Far from Home

A building destroyed by Israeli bombing in the border town of Khiam (EPA)
A building destroyed by Israeli bombing in the border town of Khiam (EPA)

Despite being displaced for ten months, southern Lebanese residents, who fled the war with Israel, are still struggling to adapt to their new lives.

They continue to hope for a return to their homes while fearing the possibility of being displaced again due to the ongoing conflict.

While they are managing as best they can, there is a deep sense of loss over their damaged or destroyed homes and livelihoods.

Some are waiting for the opportunity to return, but others, like Ali Ghandoor, have started over elsewhere.

Ghandoor moved from the border town of Khiam to Nabatieh, where he opened a new restaurant similar to his old one.

“We stayed in Khiam for a month and a half after the war began on October 7, then moved to Zahle for two months. Realizing the war might last longer, I decided to start fresh in Nabatieh,” Ghandoor told Asharq Al-Awsat.

“I rented a place, moved some equipment, and bought new supplies. It’s a risky move, but waiting indefinitely isn’t an option.”

He added that returning to Khiam immediately after the war ends isn’t feasible and predicted it will take at least two years to rebuild.

“We’ll likely stay in Nabatieh and hope we won’t have to move again if the war worsens.”

Moreover, Ghandoor and his family are struggling to adjust to their new life.

“We’ve been hit hard emotionally, mentally, and financially,” he admitted.

“The income from this new restaurant is much lower than what I had in Khiam, but at least it provides for us,” he explained.

As the new school year approaches, Ghandoor hopes to enroll his children in a local school after a difficult year with online classes.

Like Ghandoor, Umm Suleiman and George are waiting for the war to end. Umm Suleiman moved from Yaroun, a border town, to Babilieh in the Sidon district.

George fled from Dibbail to Metn; both towns are in the Bint Jbeil district.

Umm Suleiman lives in Babilieh with her husband, daughter, and son-in-law, staying in a friend’s house for free.

George and his family, along with his two sisters, are staying in their brother’s house in Dekwaneh, Metn, while he is in Germany. Both families are trying to adjust, hoping to return home soon.

“We left our home after October 7, when the bombing got worse. We didn’t think the war would drag on this long. It’s affecting our health—we feel sick and tired all the time. But we’re hopeful and determined to return home soon. We won’t let the Israelis force us out of our land,” Umm Suleiman told Asharq Al-Awsat.

Being displaced has also separated Umm Suleiman from her family, with each member moving to different places.

“I’m far from my family and only see them occasionally now. We used to live together in the same town,” she said.

Moreover, she worries about having to move again if the war expands and is concerned about rising rental prices.

“During the 2006 war, we went to Syria, but that’s not possible now. We just want to get back home as soon as we can,” said Umm Suleiman.

George, from Dibbail, feels somewhat safe in Dekwaneh, where he’s staying, believing it’s less likely to be targeted if the war worsens. Still, he finds it hard to adjust after living in the south.

“We’re fortunate to have moved into our brother’s house, and I’m teaching online like my children. But my sister, who’s also a teacher, couldn’t handle the displacement and went back to Dibbail about a month ago,” said George.

“We know our situation is better than many, but we’re all waiting for the war to end so we can return home. We’re tired of being displaced and can’t take much more,” he added.