Sameera Casmod | sameerac@radioislam.co.za
5 May 2025 | 14:30 CAT
3-minute read

Starvation deepens, resistance grows: Gaza endures genocide and siege

As Gaza endures its longest and most punishing siege in modern history, the humanitarian toll grows more devastating by the day. With 64 consecutive days of a total blockade, civilians are succumbing not only to Israeli bombardment but to hunger, disease, and medical neglect.

“There’s nothing more important to talk about at this moment in time than the starvation in Gaza,” said Moulana Ebrahim Moosa in his weekly Palestine Report on Radio Islam. “We understand this is now the longest continuous total siege imposed by the Israelis on Gaza since the beginning of this genocide.”

The impacts are heartbreaking. Reports continue to surface of children dying from malnutrition. One of the latest victims was four-month-old Jenan Saleh al-Skafi, who passed away from malnutrition at Al-Rantisi Hospital in Gaza City. In Al-Awda Hospital, another child was born without a brain—extreme outcomes that are becoming disturbingly frequent.

Moulana Moosa explained that healing from basic injuries now takes far longer due to malnutrition, increasing the risk of secondary complications. Community kitchens are overwhelmed, and the remaining food supply consists of little more than canned goods—often expired or inedible. There are no fresh foods to be found.

Despite these catastrophic conditions, the Palestinian resistance continues to mount unexpected counteroffensives, particularly in Rafah. The city, almost entirely flattened by Israeli bombardment, was presumed cleared of resistance fighters. Yet in recent days, Hamas executed coordinated ambushes that have inflicted serious casualties on Israeli soldiers. The Israeli daily Haaretz reflected the shift in tone with a sobering headline: “As Israeli soldiers die in Gaza again, the IDF faces a sobering reality about Hamas.”

“Despite the ebbs and flows, the resistance continues, it has a strategy and emerges at strategic times,” said Moulana Moosa. His words capture the resilience that continues to define Palestinian resistance—against all odds and against the narrative that Gaza has been militarily subdued.

Meanwhile, wildfires tore across central Israel last week, described by local officials as “one of the largest wildfires in the history of the Israeli state, if not the largest ever.” The fires coincided with Israel’s so-called Independence Day, which marks the Nakba on the Hebrew calendar. Canada Park, a forest planted by the Jewish National Fund on destroyed Palestinian villages, was engulfed in flames, along with over 24 000 dunams of land.

“There’s something poetic about it,” reflected Moulana Moosa. “Many people from all kinds of backgrounds have read into this.” He added that the ecological disaster is partly the result of Zionist reforestation strategies, which replaced native flora with highly flammable European pine trees.

Israeli society has erupted in recriminations, with blame cast in all directions—from Palestinians to political opponents. Even Prime Minister Netanyahu’s son publicly accused the Israeli left of setting the fires.

In a further development, Yemen’s Houthi-led Ansarullah group launched a missile strike on Israel’s Ben Gurion Airport that penetrated multiple layers of missile defence, leaving a 25-metre crater. The strike has been hailed by Hamas as a significant show of solidarity. The Houthis have since declared an aerial blockade, following their earlier maritime blockade, leading to flight cancellations by international airlines including Lufthansa, Swiss Air, and Austrian Airlines.

“This reflects a firm commitment to the Palestinian cause and salutes the Yemeni people,” said Hamas spokesperson Abu Obeida, in a rare moment of cross-movement affirmation.

As the siege on Gaza drags into its third month, the reality for Palestinians remains one of slow death and daily courage. In the words of Moulana Moosa, the world is witnessing “a genocide carried out through starvation”—but also, a people refusing to be erased.

Listen to the Palestine Report on Sabaahul Muslim with Moulana Ebrahim Moosa.