About 130 children are being born daily in Gaza as Israeli authorities' total siege on supplies enters its second month, putting mothers and newborns at risk as medical and food supplies run out and a lack of flour closes all bakeries, said Save the Children. 

There are about 50,000 pregnant women in Gaza, with 4,000 deliveries estimated in March, according to UNFPA [1]. That’s about 130 babies born every day over a month into a healthcare system driven to the verge of collapse, where some may not survive complications at birth. 

Not one truck - humanitarian or commercial - has been allowed into Gaza since the Government of Israel imposed a total siege on 2 March. No goods have entered including water, flour, fuel, or medicine, and essential supplies are quickly depleting. All bakeries across the Gaza Strip – a critical source of food - have closed after exhausting their remaining flour stocks, according to the World Food Programme. 

The survival of mothers and newborn children in Gaza is under particular threat due to the lack of food, destruction of hospitals, and chronic stress. Malnutrition during pregnancy can seriously affect a baby’s development, leading to low birth weight, stunted growth, and long-term difficulties in learning and development. 

The number of miscarriages has reportedly surged with a 300% increase in Gaza during the war and pregnancy complications that would normally be treatable are now becoming life-threatening [2]. More babies are being born premature and underweight, putting them at risk of serious, lifelong health problems.