Families say they are rationing what little food they can find while living under the constant threat of Israeli bombardment.
Mohammed Kilani is worried about his twin 2-year-old daughters. He cannot afford milk for them and most other food is unavailable in northern Gaza, where he lives with his family.
“They are not growing up well, I can see that,” said Mr. Kilani, a 38-year-old lawyer in the northern town of Beit Lahia. “But what can I do?”
The United Nation has warned of catastrophic living conditions and the risk of famine for some 400,000 civilians in northern Gaza amid a renewed Israeli offensive this month in the enclave. The U.N. and humanitarian groups say the lack of desperately needed aid is the result of aid crossings into Gaza being closed by Israel.
Israeli authorities say that they are not limiting aid into Gaza, and that humanitarian agencies have failed to distribute the aid.
Long before the latest offensive, Mr. Kilani and his family had struggled to find food. They have eaten apples only three times since the war began last year, and little other fruit. They ate chicken when it suddenly became available a few months ago. But the chickens disappeared from the market just as quickly as they had arrived.
Mostly, the family lives on canned food, which was distributed weeks ago and must be carefully rationed, Mr. Kilani said.
