The humanitarian situation in Gaza is a “nightmare” for mothers and babies, with doctors reporting small and sickly newborns, stillbirths and women forced to undergo C-sections without adequate anesthesia, a UN official said, AFP reports.

“I’m personally leaving Gaza this week terrified for the one million women and girls of Gaza… and most especially for the 180 women who are giving birth every single day,” Dominic Allen, UN Population Fund (UNFPA) representative for the state of Palestine, said in a video news conference from Jerusalem.

“Doctors are reporting that they no longer see normal-sized babies, “Allen said after visiting hospitals still providing maternity services in the north of Gaza, where need is especially great.

“What they do see though, tragically, is more stillborn births… and more neonatal deaths, caused in part by malnutrition, dehydration and complications.” The numbers of complicated deliveries are roughly twice what they were before the crisis with Israel began — with mothers stressed, fearful, underfed and exhausted — and caregivers often lacking necessary supplies.

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