Dangerous skin diseases spreading among Gaza children
Deir El-Balah, Palestinian Territories: More than 150,000 people in the Gaza Strip have contracted skin diseases amid the squalid conditions faced by displaced residents since October 2023. The World Health Organization (WHO) reports that Gaza's children are particularly vulnerable to these diseases due to compromised immune systems caused by malnutrition.
Wafaa Elwan’s five-year-old son, living in a Gaza tent city, suffers from severe itching due to skin infections. "My son can’t sleep through the night because he can’t stop scratching his body," Elwan shared, describing the white and red blotches covering his feet, legs, and torso.
Skin infections such as scabies, chickenpox, lice, impetigo, and other debilitating rashes are rampant among Gazans. The WHO has documented 96,417 cases of scabies and lice, 9,274 cases of chickenpox, 60,130 cases of skin rashes, and 10,038 cases of impetigo since October 2023.
Elwan's family, like many others, lives on a sandy patch near the sea close to Deir al-Balah. "We sleep on the ground, on sand where worms come out underneath us," she said. Limited access to hygiene and sanitary products exacerbates the situation. Parents previously encouraged their children to wash in the Mediterranean, but pollution from the war has made the sea hazardous.
Pharmacist Sami Hamid, who runs a makeshift clinic in Deir al-Balah, noted the prevalence of scabies and chickenpox. "Children’s skin suffers from the hot weather and the lack of clean water," Hamid explained. He provided calamine lotion to soothe the itching of affected children.
Doctors Without Borders (MSF) warns that Gaza’s children are especially susceptible to skin conditions due to malnutrition. Mohammed Abu Mughaiseeb, MSF's medical coordinator in Gaza, highlighted the additional risk posed by hot weather and poor hygiene.
Hamid reported that 24 out of 150 students in a makeshift school had scabies, with infections spreading among them. WHO warned of other diseases rampaging through displacement camps due to poor hygiene. Primitive toilets draining into channels among tents contribute to the spread of epidemics, with 485,000 cases of diarrhoea reported.
The United Nations reports that 1.9 million people in Gaza, out of a population of 2.4 million, are now displaced. Israel’s aggression has resulted in at least 37,925 Palestinian deaths, primarily civilians, according to official figures.
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Hassan: Farmer killed in wild elephant attack
Hassan: A 65-year-old farmer was killed in a wild elephant attack in Belur taluk on Sunday morning.
The deceased has been identified as Raj shetty (65), a resident of Kanaguppe village.
According to police, the elephant, which was hiding in nearby bushes, suddenly attacked Raj shetty while he was on his way to work in his garden. The animal reportedly lifted him with its trunk and trampled him to death.
Forest department officials and police come to the spot upon receiving information and launched an operation to drive the elephant away.
The incident occurred within the limits of Arehalli police station.
