GAZA CITY, Palestine/ISTANBUL

With his body reduced to little more than skin and bone, 27-year-old Adel Fawzi Madi died this week at Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis in southern Gaza, becoming yet another victim of Israel’s devastating blockade and the famine it has unleashed.

Lying on his deathbed with sunken stomach, protruding bones, and a pale face, Adel’s frail frame testified to the hunger war consuming Palestinians in Gaza, where hospitals struggle to provide even basic care amid Israel’s relentless assault and the collapse of medical and humanitarian supplies.

“He was around 50 kilograms (110 pounds) before his weight dropped to just 15 kg (33 pounds),” his cousin Ismail Madi told Anadolu.

“He had hepatitis, and his health worsened because of malnutrition, the siege, and despair. We had no access to medicine, food, or clean water.

“If the crossings had been open and treatment available, Adel would not have ended up like this,” Ismail said. “His weight kept dropping, and there was nothing we could do. No medicine, no clean water, and no one answered our pleas.”

The family said they never imagined Adel, a young man in his prime, would be reduced to what Ismail described as a “skeleton,” weighing only 15 kilograms at the age of 27.

The World Food Program (WFP) warned last week that one-third of Palestinians in Gaza have not eaten for several days as the Israeli blockade continues.

“The hunger crisis in Gaza has reached unprecedented levels of desperation,” said Ross Smith, WFP’s director of emergency preparedness and response. “A third of the population goes several days in a row without food.”

According to Gaza’s Health Ministry, at least 154 Palestinians, including 89 children, have died from starvation and malnutrition since Oct. 7, 2023.

The Israeli army has pursued a brutal offensive on Gaza since Oct. 7, 2023, killing over 60,200 Palestinians. The relentless bombardment has devastated the enclave and led to food shortages.

On Monday, Israeli rights groups B’Tselem and Physicians for Human Rights-Israel accused Israel of committing genocide in Gaza, citing the systematic destruction of Palestinian society and the deliberate dismantling of the territory’s healthcare system.

Last November, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.

Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on the enclave.