Rome, 20 June (LaPresse) – The number of malnourished children in the Gaza Strip is increasing at an alarming rate, with 5,119 children aged between 6 months and 5 years receiving treatment for acute malnutrition in May alone. According to data received from UNICEF-supported nutrition centres across the Gaza Strip, this represents an increase of almost 50% compared to the 3,444 children who received treatment in April 2025 and a 150% increase compared to February, when the ceasefire was in place and aid was entering the Gaza Strip in significant quantities. Of the 5,119 children who received treatment in May, 636 were suffering from severe acute malnutrition (SAM), the most lethal form of malnutrition. These children need constant and monitored treatment, safe water and medical care to survive, all of which are increasingly scarce in Gaza today. The number of children affected by SAM has increased by 146% since February. ‘In the Gaza Strip, in just 150 days, from the beginning of the year to the end of May, 16,736 children – an average of 112 per day – received treatment for malnutrition,’ said Edouard Beigbeder, UNICEF Regional Director for the Middle East and North Africa. "Every single one of these cases was preventable. The food, water and nutritional treatment they desperately need are being blocked. Man-made decisions are costing lives. Israel must urgently allow the large-scale delivery of life-saving aid through all border crossings."