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Israel-Hamas war has disproportionate impact on women and children in Gaza

Palestinian children look at the destruction after an Israeli strike in Rafah, southern Gaza Strip. (Fatima Shbair/AP)
Palestinian children look at the destruction after an Israeli strike in Rafah, southern Gaza Strip. (Fatima Shbair/AP)

Women and children in Gaza are being disproportionately impacted by the Israel-Hamas war. They make up approximately 70% of those killed in Gaza according to Palestinian health officials. A new report from a United Nations agency says that two mothers are killed every hour in Gaza and more than 3,000 women have become widows since the war began on Oct. 7.

Additionally, the United Nations says more than 10,000 children in Gaza have been killed by Israeli forces and more than 1,000 have had at least one or both of their legs amputated due to injuries sustained as a result of the fighting.

We hear from Dr. Tanya Haj-Hassan, a pediatric intensive care doctor with Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières about what she’s hearing from colleagues on the ground about how this war is taking its toll on women and children in Gaza.

Click here for more coverage and different points of view.

This article was originally published on WBUR.org.

Copyright 2024 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.