The starving children of Gaza need more than strong words against Israel - Yorkshire Post Letters

At the time of writing, 61,430 people have been killed in Gaza since October 7, 2023, including at least 18,430 children. The total includes 217 who have died of starvation, including 100 children.

The United Nations has warned that all children of Gaza under the age of five are at risk of life-threatening malnourishment. So far 40,500 children have been injured.

British paramedic Sam Sears, who recently spent three weeks in Gaza, described the situation as 'a conveyor belt of carnage'.

Following an incident where two children – aged nine and 11 – died from blast injuries, he said: 'It was particularly heartbreaking putting a child in a body bag, seeing their face for the last time, then moving them out [of] the way so we could treat more people'.

At the end of last month, two Israeli human rights groups, B'Tselem and Physicians for Human Rights Israel, published reports stating that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza.

The first report condemns Israel for the 'massive, indiscriminate bombardment of population centres' and the 'starvation of more than two million people as a method of warfare'.

The second report states: 'The evidence shows the systematic and deliberate dismantling of Gaza's health and life-sustaining systems through targeted attacks on hospitals, obstruction of medical aid and evacuations and killing and detention of healthcare personnel'.

The charge of genocide has been reiterated by several Israeli scholars and researchers including Holocaust and genocide experts.

This is happening when we in the UK are witnessing the unedifying spectacle of police, sanctioned by our own government, arresting protestors including pensioners carrying placards which include the words 'I oppose Genocide'.

This is happening when Keir Starmer, a human rights lawyer, tells Netanyahu, like a naughty child, that his planned extension of the war, in effect the ethnic cleansing of Gaza, is 'wrong'.

Faced with genocide we need the government to do more than threatening to recognise Palestine as a state in September. We need the greatest pressure on Israel to agree a ceasefire, allowing in all the necessary humanitarian aid, and in so doing maximising the possibility of the return of hostages.

The greatest pressure has to consist of economic sanctions and the complete ban of arms sales, including our sales of spare parts for F-35 jets, which have been used to kill civilians in Gaza. We need more than just words. The children dying now in Gaza need more than just words.