Disease-stricken canines are scavenging decaying corpses in the city streets of northern Gaza, according to the head of the emergency services.
"In northern Gaza, it's evident that people are grappling with hunger's symptoms," Fares Afana, the head of emergency services, shared with CNN over the phone on Monday. "Israeli forces are systematically annihilating anything that symbolizes existence or indications of life."
Afana reported to CNN that his team has been receiving the bodies of Palestinians from northern Gaza, some of which bear marks of animals scavenging, hampering identification efforts.
"Even starving strays are devouring these bodies in the streets... It complicates our task of identifying the deceased," he commented.
He provided CNN with a photo depicting the remains of a young boy whom he alleged was eaten by stray dogs.
Afana pointed out that "thousands of children" and pregnant women are trapped in the encircled region, where for the past 12 days, the Israeli military has conducted aerial and ground attacks in three neighborhoods.
The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) claims they're targeting Hamas' re-emergence there.
As per the UN’s Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs reported on Sunday, at least 50,000 people have fled from the Jabalya area. The nearly 400,000 remaining in northern Gaza are haunted by hunger and endure deafening bombardment.
The UN has accused the Israeli military of forcing Northern Gaza's residents to choose between starvation or displacement.
Philippe Lazzarini, the head of the UN’s agency for Palestine refugees (UNRWA), stated on Monday, "Civilians are left with no option but to either starve or migrate. In Gaza, numerous red lines have been overstepped. What could potentially be classified as war crimes can still be averted."
The Israeli organization responsible for managing aid into Gaza stated that 30 trucks entered the north on Monday, asserting that Israel "isn't obstructing the entry of humanitarian aid."
Afana disclosed that on Monday, Israeli forces had opened fire on residents of northern Gaza searching for food at a UNRWA aid center. "The situation is spiraling out of control," he said.
UNRWA reported that an artillery attack on its Jabalya food distribution center on Monday allegedly killed at least 10 people and injured another 40.
CNN asked the IDF for comment.
"The situation for paramedics in this area is also dangerous... as a consequence of the roads being blown up and direct gunfire from the Israeli military on our vehicles," Afana stated.
He shared a video of the aftermath, showing an ambulance with flattened tires and bullet holes.
"The situation in northern Gaza is a genuine holocaust," he emphasized. "We're struggling to fulfill our duties as usual."
CNN asked the IDF about Afana's allegations that emergency vehicles had been fired upon by the Israeli military.
Since the Israeli operations started earlier this month, at least 342 Palestinians have been reported dead in parts of northern Gaza, as per Gaza’s Government Media Office, adding that hundreds of "civilians, children, and women" have been wounded. On Tuesday, at least 17 people lost their lives in northern Gaza, according to Gaza’s Civil Defense.
The world is watching as the situation in northern Gaza escalates, with Palestinians trapped and facing starvation or displacement. The Middle East is once again a center of conflict and humanitarian crisis.
Despite the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) claiming they're targeting Hamas' re-emergence, the UN has accused them of forcing Northern Gaza's residents to choose between starvation or displacement, with at least 50,000 people having fled from the Jabalya area and the remaining 400,000 enduring hunger and bombardment.
